Kangmin Justin Kim Transports Us Through Time and Culture with M. Butterfly
07/30/22 • 48 min
Bad romances don’t come much better than the complicated relationship at the heart of M. Butterfly . Host Jane Trembley talks fantasy versus reality with countertenor Kangmin Justin Kim before his Santa Fe Opera and U.S. mainstage debut as Song Liling in this operatic world premiere.
The pair also discuss the psychology behind Justin's character, transitioning from musical theater to opera, and building representation in the classical music community.
“There are a lot of dichotomies in this piece,” Justin says of the lopsided love affair between French diplomat René Gallimard and Song Liling, the Beijing opera star who exploits Gallimard’s self-delusion to secure their own safety. “[There’s] lots of East and West, man and woman, truth and lies. It's very yin yang.”
The highly anticipated world premiere, delayed two years by pandemic-related scheduling conflicts, is an inventive operatic reworking by David Henry Hwang of his iconic 1988 Tony Award-winning musical. Composer Huang Ruo’s score complements Hwang’s libretto perfectly, providing intelligent references to Puccini’s Madame Butterfly and an increasingly distorted soundscape against which Gallimard and Liling's relationship reaches its inevitable conclusion.
Revisiting decades-old source material is not without its challenges. “I want people to understand that this is a period piece,” says Justin. “M. Butterfly lives in the past, and we need to watch this opera through the lens of the 1960s and the late 1980s when the play was first presented to the world.”
He challenges audiences to consider how far we’ve come in addressing issues connected to sexual orientation, gender identity, and Imperialism––and how far we’ve yet to go.
FEATURINGKangmin Justin Kim – Countertenor
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODEDSFO0206 - Larger Than Life: Verdi’s Falstaff with Quinn Kelsey
CREDITSDestination Santa Fe Opera is a Santa Fe Opera podcast, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.
Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz
Hosted by: Jane Trembley
Show Notes by: Lisa Widder
***
Learn more about the Santa Fe Opera and plan your visit at https://www.santafeopera.org.
We'd love for you to join us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok @santafeopera.
Bad romances don’t come much better than the complicated relationship at the heart of M. Butterfly . Host Jane Trembley talks fantasy versus reality with countertenor Kangmin Justin Kim before his Santa Fe Opera and U.S. mainstage debut as Song Liling in this operatic world premiere.
The pair also discuss the psychology behind Justin's character, transitioning from musical theater to opera, and building representation in the classical music community.
“There are a lot of dichotomies in this piece,” Justin says of the lopsided love affair between French diplomat René Gallimard and Song Liling, the Beijing opera star who exploits Gallimard’s self-delusion to secure their own safety. “[There’s] lots of East and West, man and woman, truth and lies. It's very yin yang.”
The highly anticipated world premiere, delayed two years by pandemic-related scheduling conflicts, is an inventive operatic reworking by David Henry Hwang of his iconic 1988 Tony Award-winning musical. Composer Huang Ruo’s score complements Hwang’s libretto perfectly, providing intelligent references to Puccini’s Madame Butterfly and an increasingly distorted soundscape against which Gallimard and Liling's relationship reaches its inevitable conclusion.
Revisiting decades-old source material is not without its challenges. “I want people to understand that this is a period piece,” says Justin. “M. Butterfly lives in the past, and we need to watch this opera through the lens of the 1960s and the late 1980s when the play was first presented to the world.”
He challenges audiences to consider how far we’ve come in addressing issues connected to sexual orientation, gender identity, and Imperialism––and how far we’ve yet to go.
FEATURINGKangmin Justin Kim – Countertenor
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODEDSFO0206 - Larger Than Life: Verdi’s Falstaff with Quinn Kelsey
CREDITSDestination Santa Fe Opera is a Santa Fe Opera podcast, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.
Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz
Hosted by: Jane Trembley
Show Notes by: Lisa Widder
***
Learn more about the Santa Fe Opera and plan your visit at https://www.santafeopera.org.
We'd love for you to join us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok @santafeopera.
Previous Episode
Jamie Barton on Epic Singing, Queer Characters, and the Heart and Complication in Tristan und Isolde
There’s no such thing as a “little” Wagner. Host Jane Trembley catches up with internationally acclaimed mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton in anticipation of the epic Santa Fe Opera debut of Tristan und Isolde.
The pair chat about the thrill of performing this legendary tale of love and betrayal––and why Richard Wagner’s music is totally worth leaving the house for! Jamie also discusses interpreting her characters through a queer lens and transcending the score to create meaningful art.
“I love this character!” says Jamie of the empathetic Brangäne. “She reminds me of myself in a lot of ways.” For this production, loyal maid Brangäne is cast as Isolde’s sibling. That sisterly bond provides a fresh emotional counterpoint to the titular lovers’ physical attraction. Exploring such nuances suits Jamie, a big, queer girl who advocates for bringing one’s whole self to the stage. “My job is to story-tell, and one of the baseline things I allow myself to do is come with my own honest perspective.”
Jamie, a self-professed Wagner nerd, asserts that Tristan und Isolde sets the bar for all other works in the German composer’s canon, if not all of modern musical composition. “It's overwhelming! This particular opera inspired so much of the 20th-century stuff that we know.”
Still, some folks might need additional coaxing to venture out. For them, Jamie plays her most persuasive card: The Crosby Theatre itself. “We're starting this before sunset, so there’ll be this daytime-to-nighttime transition. That’s an element that’s difficult to get in any other sort of typical theater.”
FEATURINGJamie Barton – Mezzo-Soprano
CREDITSDestination Santa Fe Opera is a Santa Fe Opera podcast, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.
Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz
Hosted by: Jane Trembley
Show Notes by: Lisa Widder
***
Learn more about the Santa Fe Opera and plan your visit at https://www.santafeopera.org.
We'd love for you to join us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok @santafeopera.
Next Episode
Getting to the Next Phase in Your Opera Career featuring Technical Apprentice Khadija Ann Tarver and Apprentice Singer Thomas Cilluffo
Santa Fe Opera plays host to more than peerless productions. On stage and off, SFO apprentices spend the season learning by doing at one of the most celebrated and welcoming training grounds in the world. Host Jane Trembley chats with technical apprentice Khadija Ann Tarver and apprentice singer Thomas Cilluffo about their respective programs, what advice the pair have for aspiring apprentices, and their plans beyond Santa Fe.
“I was coming in open-minded since I didn't have a traditional theater background,” admits Khadija. Talent earned her a coveted spot on this season’s props and carpentry team, while curiosity has improved Khadija’s design-and-build acumen. “There's a lot of pressure [to feel like] I'm not particularly good at this yet. Then there's a moment when you realize all of these people in the scene shop and carpentry shop are here to help me, and they want to see me learn as much as possible.”
Apprentice opportunities honor SFO founder John Crosby’s vision of providing an immersive and inclusive environment in which to gain practical experience. “Once you get here, you get coachings, you get lessons, you do apprentice scenes, you do master classes, you sing in the choruses,” Tom says. While his intense performance routine doesn’t leave much downtime for anything but rest, he welcomes the challenges and is bolstered by the camaraderie. “I think the best advice I can give is always to assume positive intent because nobody is here to be your opposition.”
Learn more about The Santa Fe Opera’s Apprentice Program for Singers and the Apprentice Program for Theater Technicians.
FEATURINGKhadija Ann Tarver - Technical Apprentice
Thomas Cilluffo - Performance Apprentice
CREDITSDestination Santa Fe Opera is a Santa Fe Opera podcast, produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios.
Post-Production Audio: Edwin R. Ruiz
Hosted by: Jane Trembley
Additional Editing by: Helen King
Show Notes by: Lisa Widder
***
Learn more about the Santa Fe Opera and plan your visit at https://www.santafeopera.org.
We'd love for you to join us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok @santafeopera.
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