Vets Opera by UCLA Professor: Free Virtual Performances

Prof. Kenneth Wells. The cast of “Veteran Journeys.” From left to right: Bernardo Bermudez, Todd Strange, Patrick Blackwell, Jamie Chamberlin, Jennifer Wallace.

From the Press-Telegram: Veterans issues, such as homelessness and mental health, are often considered taboo or difficult topics to talk about. So one UCLA professor decided to sing about them instead. Dr. Kenneth Wells, professor at UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, Semel Institute and David Geffen School of Medicine, wrote the music and libretto for “Veteran Journeys”, an opera about pressing issues facing servicemen and women once they’ve returned home from war and retired to civilian life.  “Veteran Journeys” will premiere on Thursday, June 3, with a second performance scheduled for Sunday, June 6.

“One reason that I integrated a focus on art/composing with areas of my clinical and research work, is that community partners in our community-participatory research on depression emphasized the importance of arts as an engagement strategy to address stigma,” Wells said.

Wells based the opera on research interviews conducted by the RAND Corporation and UCLA. Researchers interviewed veterans and their families with 10-year follow-ups and recorded the conversations. Wells listened to these recordings while writing the opera, though he’s disguised the interviewees in order to maintain the confidential nature of the tapes...

Full story at https://www.presstelegram.com/2021/05/30/through-veteran-journeys-a-ucla-professor-seeks-to-turn-taboo-topics-into-song-and-hope/amp/

Register to watch the opera (free) on Thursday, June 3, or on Sunday, June 6, at:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/veteran-journeys-opera-world-premiere-virtual-tickets-150609963455

Preview at link below:

Or direct to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFyRDosBX7Y.