Guerillas Receive Two Grant Awards from Mass Humanities and Massachusetts Cultural Council

BOSTON, MA (May 6, 2021) — Guerilla Opera is thrilled to announce that they have been awarded both a Mass Humanities Digital Capacity Grant to help fund upcoming Interactive Multi-Sensory Workshops in collaboration with The Perkins Braille and Talking Book Library, and a Cultural Investment Portfolio Project Grant from Massachusetts Cultural Council to support the "SALT," an experimental film, with music by Bahar Royaee and libretto by Deniz Khateri.

DIGITAL CAPACITY GRANT AWARDS

The Digital Capacity Grant awards from Mass Humanities give museums, historical societies and other cultural organizations the opportunity to reach their audiences digitally as the COVID-19 pandemic persists. From laptops to website upgrades, mobile walking tours to virtual exhibits, the Digital Capacity Grants announced today provide residents with access to their heritage despite social distancing.

Mass Humanities, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, awarded more than $250,000 to 59 non-profits in the state, with funding made possible through support from the Mass Cultural Council.

Guerilla Opera has developed multi-sensory musical workshops for visually impaired audiences. The workshops are 90-minute interactive and tactile lectures, where participants will get to meet the composers of each opera, with opportunities for comments, reflection and questions for the artists. The workshops run May 2021 through July 2021 and focus on different sensory experiences: taste, touch, smell, shape, and movement.

Thursday, May 13, 2020 from 2-3:30pm EDT

Experience puppetry through motion while listening to “Rumpelstiltskin” by Marti Epstein.

Thursday, June 10, 2020 from 2-3:30pm EDT

Experience a first listen to “Island of Hope, Island of Tears” by composer Gabriele Vanoni and librettist Ewa Chrisciel, while exploring the artifacts that represent who we are and that reminds us of home.

Thursday, July 1, 2020 from 2-3:30pm EDT

Experience the musical “crunch” of “GALLO: a fable in music” by Ken Ueno, while munching on your favorite food that reminds you of your childhood.

Sign up today to join the fun! Contact Beth White at the Perkins Library at 617-972-7241 or email Elizabeth.White@Perkins.org. Learn more about Tele-Fun Activities at https://www.perkins.org/library/telefun.

The Perkins Library has provided accessible reading material to people with visual impairment and other disabilities since 1837. Since then, they have significantly expanded offerings to serve more people with more nuanced needs. The Perkins Library now distributes more than half a million accessible books, magazines, newspapers, DVDs and more, at no cost to the estimated 28,000 patrons served annually. They’ve also led the charge in distributing assistive technologies like refreshable braille displays while providing a website that enables people to download accessible reading material. (https://www.perkins.org/library)

CULTURAL INVESTMENT PORTFOLIO PROJECTS GRANTS

Cultural organizations across the Commonwealth are continuing to find innovative and creative solutions to connect with their communities, even though they aren’t able to bring people together in their traditional ways. Mass Cultural Council is pleased to support 161 organizations across the Commonwealth with $342,500 in Cultural Investment Portfolio Projects grants for programming during the July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2021 fiscal year.

Guerilla Opera received a Cultural Investment Portfolio Projects grant award to support the commission of “SALT” is an experimental opera film music by Bahar Royai and written and directed by Deniz Khateri. Inspired by the struggles of friends and acquaintances from Khateri’s homeland of Iran, “SALT” is a portrait of an elder woman who, as she cooks soup for her husband, expounds on her salty life of being trapped in a loveless and abusive marriage.

Domestic abuse is an issue that is experienced by people all over the world. This genre-bending film puts forward a beautiful and visceral story that generates empathy, compassion and understanding for those affected by domestic abuse, all through the lens of a creative team led by all BIPOC Womxn. It is scored for soprano and electronics and estimated to be 10-15 minutes long. “SALT” takes the genre of opera to a new realm by expanding its antiquated definition through cinematic techniques.

To experience “SALT” join Guerilla Opera on Thursday, June 24, 2021 at 8pm for “Emergence,” a virtual concert featuring a first listen to works the Guerillas have been developing for live performance during the pandemic to be featured in their upcoming 15th Season! Event information is available on the Guerilla Opera website at https://guerillaopera.org/events.

Follow links for more information on Mass Humanities and the Digital Capacity Grant and Massachusetts Cultural Council. To learn more about The Perkins Library visit The Perkins Library website.

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WHO WE ARE

In daring performances Guerilla Opera has garnered a national reputation for innovative contemporary opera with The Boston Globe raving that “radical exploration remains the cornerstone of everything it does.” This Boston-based, artist-led ensemble’s mission is to immerse audiences in profound experiences through the creation of custom-tailored new works. The Guerillas commission and reenvision new and experimental works, and champion cutting-edge music. They provide a vehicle for diversity, equity, inclusion, and creative authenticity. They inspire, influence and amplify emerging generations of artists and arts-lovers. Their vision is to ferociously confront the status quo, eschew antiquated and stereotypical traditions of the art form, examine stories through diverse and contemporary lenses, and bring new music to new audiences. (guerillaopera.org)