MISSING
ATOM(ArtistsoftheOperaMISSING)conductedbyTimothyLong,featuringtheContinuumEnsemble MusicbyBrianCurrent,LibrettobyMarieClements
Prelude
Act I Scene 1: Fly Away
Act I Scene 2: You Don't Look Like Yourself
Act I Scene 3: Dr. Wilson
Act I Scene 4: Ava and Jess
Act I Scene 5: Angus
Act I Scene 6: Everything Has Changed in Me
Act I Scene 7: Language Lesson
Act I Scene 8: Hlguhlxw
Act I Scene 9: A Gitxsan Wedding
Act II Scene 1a: There Should Be No Sun
Act II Scene 1b: The Mother's Aria
Act II Scene 2: She Cries
Act II Scene 3: Nightmare
Act II Scene 4: Ava Wake Up
Act II Scene 5: You Don't Have to Be Afraid of Me
Act II Scene 6: I Saw Your Eyes
MISSING
Artists: ATOM (Artists of the Opera MISSING), Continuum Ensemble, conducted by Timothy Long
MISSING was created to confront the ongoing crisis of Canada’ s Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG). With music developed in collaboration between librettist Marie Clements, composer Brian Current, and Artists of the Opera MISSING (ATOM), the opera gives voice to the untold stories of the Indigenous women, families, and communities affected by this national tragedy.
Invited into the project by a production team composed of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous members, Current joined after the libretto was fully complete, shaping the music in close partnership with the cast and cultural advisors. The wedding scene, for instance, was built from texts and melodies gifted to the creative team by Gitxsan language consultant Vincent Gogag, who played an essential role in ensuring the rhythms and tonal colours of Gitxsan speech were authentically woven into the music.
More than half the cast and crew are of Indigenous background, and the first performance of each production has been reserved for the families of the victims, whose feedback has been nothing short of heartbreaking. The Artists of the Opera MISSING (ATOM) and Continuum Ensemble, led by conductor Timothy Long, weave contemporary classical music with Gitxsan language and cultural traditions, moving through grief, memory, and justice—ensuring these voices continue to be heard.
CREATIVE TEAM
Libretto: Marie Clements
Music: Brian Current
Rehearsal Pianist – Stephane Meyer
Album Cover – Carey Newman
Gitxsan Speaker & Elder, Co-Creator of Wedding Scene: Vincent Gogag
Conductor: Timothy Long
Red Dress Image by Carey Newman
Produced by Brian Current • Engineered by Dennis Patterson
Mastered by Andrew Bove • Recorded at Revolution Recording, Toronto
CONTINUUM ENSEMBLE
Flute: Leslie Newman | Clarinet: Anthony Thomson
Violin: Carol Fujino | Cello: Paul Widner
Piano: Greg Oh | Percussion: Ryan Scott, Michael Murphy
Artistic Director: Ryan Scott
CAST
Cait Wood: Ava | Melody Courage: The Native Girl (Soprano)
Andrea Ludwig: Jess | Marion Newman: Dr. Wilson
Michelle Lafferty: Native Mother (Mezzo-Soprano)
Asitha Tennekoon: Devon (Tenor) | Evan Korbut: Angus (Baritone)
MISSING SYNOPSIS
Ava, a young white woman, is thrown from her car and badly injured in a crash on Highway 16, the so-called Highway of Tears. As she struggles to regain consciousness, she sees another body—a young Native girl—lying on the ground nearby. Their eyes meet.
Some time after the accident, Ava returns to law school with her friend Jess and ex-boyfriend Devon. A guest lecturer, Dr. Wilson, speaks to the class about Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women in Canada. Jess resists, arguing with Dr. Wilson, and feels betrayed when Ava refuses to support her. Their friendship is shattered.
Elsewhere, at a cabin, the Native Mother and her adult son, Angus, share a quiet moment. A flashback reveals Angus as a teenager, playing with his much younger sister—his last memory of her before she disappeared. In downtown Vancouver, Ava begins to see the Native Girl’ s reflection in store windows. The visions unsettle her. She unexpectedly runs into Devon, and their love is rekindled. As Ava’ s transformation deepens, she begins learning the Gitxsan language from Dr. Wilson.
At home, Ava, now pregnant, contemplates the life growing inside her. Suddenly, the Native Girl appears in the mirror. Ava is shaken, but when the Native Girl vanishes, she calls out: “Don’t go, I’ m sorry. ” They speak.
Ava and Devon celebrate their marriage in a traditional Gitxsan ceremony, embracing a new life together.
At the cabin, the Native Mother mourns her lost daughter, her grief filling the silence of the woods.
Ava grows distressed as her newborn baby cries endlessly. Dr. Wilson gently explains that the baby is passing between two worlds, much like Ava herself.
Meanwhile, the Native Girl is attacked in the woods beside Highway 16. Ava experiences this horror as a nightmare, feeling it as if it were happening to her. She wakes up, terrified, and Devon comforts her before falling back to sleep. Ava paces the room, rocking her baby.
The Native Girl appears again, and this time, Ava allows her to hold the baby. As they cradle the child together, their voices intertwine in song—echoing the Native Mother’ s song to her lost daughter. Their worlds connect.
The Native Mother calls her daughter home. Ava and the Native Girl have found each other at last—each sees herself in the other. The Native Girl’ s spirit can finally fly away.
At the cabin, the Native Mother and Angus mourn, holding the memory of their daughter and sister close as they say goodbye.
ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES
TIMOTHY LONG is a distinguished conductor, pianist, and composer, serving as Artistic and Music Director of Opera at the Eastman School of Music and an assistant conductor at the Metropolitan Opera. A citizen of the Muscogee Nation and the Thlopthlocco Tribal Town, with matrilineal Choctaw heritage, he is a passionate advocate for Indigenous artists. His work spans symphonic and operatic conducting, including engagements with the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra, Boston Lyric Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, the Brooklyn Philharmonic, and many others. In 2024, he launched The North American Indigenous Songbook, commissioning new works by Indigenous composers to expand the vocal repertoire. A dedicated mentor and leader, he is also president of The Plimpton Foundation, a member of the Board of Directors for OPERA America, and a 2024 inductee into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame.
MARIE CLEMENTS, librettist, is a Métis/Dene filmmaker, writer, and director known for her groundbreaking work in film, TV, radio, and live performance. She is the founder of MCM, a production company dedicated to Indigenous and intercultural storytelling. Her award-winning films have screened internationally at Cannes, TIFF, MOMA, VIFF, and imagineNATIVE. Her feature Red Snow won multiple awards, including Most Popular Canadian Feature at VIFF and Best Director at the American Indian Film Festival. Her music documentary The Road Forward premiered at Hot Docs, screened at over 300 venues, and won numerous accolades.
Marie’s latest projects include the NFB documentary Lay Down Your Heart and the feature drama Bones of Crows for CBC, Radio-Canada, and APTN. She has been recognized by the Writers Guild, Directors Guild, and received the WFF Women on Top Award and Telefilm Canada Birks Diamond Tribute to Women in Film.
ARTISTS OF THE OPERA MISSING (ATOM) is a collective formed in 2022 to sustain the mission of bringing the crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) to audiences through the opera MISSING. Beyond creating a definitive commercial recording, ATOM is dedicated to ensuring that the opera continues to be recognized as a powerful artistic response to this national tragedy. The collective includes notable artists such as conductor Timothy Long, mezzo-soprano Marion Newman, librettist Marie Clements, composer Brian Current and soprano Melody Courage, alongside a team of dedicated musicians, cultural consultants, and production professionals. ATOM’s work is deeply rooted in collaboration with Indigenous artists, particularly Gitxsan speaker and Elder Vince Gogag, whose contributions ensure the authenticity and respectfulness of the opera’s linguistic and cultural elements.
ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES
MISSING began as a commission by City Opera Vancouver and Pacific Opera Victoria, with a libretto by Marie Clements. Composer Brian Current was invited to join the project, shaping the music in collaboration with the creative team and Indigenous artists to honour the opera’s cultural and linguistic foundations. Since its premiere in 2017, Missing has had over 30 performances across Canada, including in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Toronto, as well as a U.S. presentation in Anchorage, Alaska. The first performance of each production has been reserved exclusively for the families of the victims, reinforcing the opera’s role in remembrance and healing.
BRIAN CURRENT, composer, studied music at McGill University and UC Berkeley. His music, lauded and broadcast in over 35 countries, has been awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Barlow Prize for Orchestral Music (USA), the Premio Fedora (Italy) for Chamber Opera, and the Selected Work (under 30) at the International Rostrum of Composers in Paris. Current's pieces have been programmed by all major symphony orchestras in Canada and by dozens of professional orchestras, ensembles, and opera companies worldwide. Current is also an in-demand conductor and regularly leads orchestral programs of contemporary music, having championed over 100 works by contemporary composers. Since 2021, he has been Artistic Director and Conductor of New Music Concerts of Toronto and, since 2007, the director of the New Music Ensemble of The Glenn School at The Royal Conservatory. In 2016, Current won the inaugural Azrieli Commissioning Competition, the largest of its kind in Canada and one of the largest in the world. In 2018, his Shout, Sisyphus, Flock won the Jules-Leger Prize for New Chamber Music.
For 40 years, the CONTINUUM ENSEMBLE has been at the forefront of supporting groundbreaking and innovative ideas in contemporary chamber music, showcasing a unique and compelling approach to programming that continues to captivate audiences. Under the guidance of Artistic Director Ryan Scott and Operations Manager Christina Volpini, Continuum has established a reputation for presenting impactful concerts that often incorporate interdisciplinary collaborations with a broad range of partners and participants.
Continuum has commissioned more than 300 works from early-career and established Canadian and international composers, recorded three critically-acclaimed CDs, and established an online archive that documents all of its activities, recordings, and practices since 1985. Continuum has also toured extensively throughout Canada and Europe, showcasing the work of Canada’s contemporary music performers and composers.
LIBRETTO
Track 1: PRELUDE
Track 2, Act I, Scene 1: Fly Away
AVA
She was lying there. Did I tell you?
She was lying there under the tree. I looked at her. Until I saw her.
THE NATIVE GIRL (GITXSAN)
Wad win ee-ya-at.
(Until I saw you.)
AVA
Until she saw me.
THE NATIVE GIRL
Until she saw me.
THE NATIVE GIRL (GITXSAN)
Lach lak ‘yens wihl lee Han’ uun lach ts’e li’ Mehl di’ lo-na?
(The leaves fell like hands over my eyes. Did I tell you?)
AVA
Did I tell you?
THE NATIVE GIRL
Did I tell you?
THE NATIVE GIRL (GITXSAN)
Lach lak ‘yens wihl lee Han’ uun lach ts’e li’.
(The leaves fell like hands over my eyes.)
AVA
I’m hanging in the wind. Who are you, girl?
THE NATIVE GIRL (GITXSAN)
‘Nee’ hl Ba hasxw. Ndaskidim ohl bahasxw,mi?
(I am the wind. Where should the wind go?)
THE NATIVE GIRL
Where should the wind go?
THE NATIVE GIRL (GITXSAN)
Gi’hl nel dzay ya ts’im lachs.
(There—a sparrow in the branches.)
AVA
I’m sorry I never picked you up.
THE NATIVE GIRL (GITXSAN)
Gi’. Kam ts’in ksi nahlchi wi’ wlhl baha sxw. Nel dzay ya.
(I’ll whisper my breath like the wind. Sparrow.)
AVA
Fly away.
THE NATIVE GIRL Fly away.
THE NATIVE GIRL (GITXSAN)
So wee gi pay gwin. (Fly away.)
AVA
A broken sparrow still can fly.
THE NATIVE GIRL (GITXSAN)
Ga kax hl Nel dzay ya ts’ ax wil- dihl skik sxwt. (A broken sparrow still has wings.)
Track 3, Act I, Scene 2:
You Don't Look Like Yourself
JESS
You don’t look like yourself.
AVA
I don’t feel like myself.
JESS What do you feel like?
AVA
Like I am myself but I’m broken. Missing parts of myself.
JESS and DEVON
I missed you. I waited for you each day. I prayed for you each day. Please let her live. Please let her breathe. Every day. Every day. I said these things. Every day I waited. Every day I missed you. I wished you alive.
AVA
I was in a deep sleep far from myself. In a dark sky. Moving across something but never understanding the beginning, never reaching the end.
JESS and DEVON
I missed you. I waited for you each night. I prayed for you. I prayed each night. Every night. Every night. I said these things. Every night I wished you alive.
AVA
I’ve lifted from a nightmare. Today is like flying into a dream.
JESS
You’re here now.
AVA Am I?
JESS
I can see you. I can hear you. You are alive.
AVA
You can see me?
JESS and DEVON
All nightmares come to an end. All darkness meets the light.
I can see you. I can hear you. You are alive.
AVA
But what about her?
JESS
What about who?
Track 4, Act I, Scene 3: Dr. Wilson
DR. WILSON
What do you see when you see me?
DR. WILSON
Anyone?
DR. WILSON
Do you recognize me?
DR. WILSON
JESS
Do I recognize you as what?
As a human being. Do you recognize me as a human being?
DR. WILSON
There are five thousand Native women missing in this country. Five thousand—missing.
DR. WILSON
Answer me this—what happens to a society when we can’t recognize another human being as part of ourselves? What are we missing?
JESS
I don’t understand.
DR. WILSON
You don’t understand.
JESS
I don’t understand what you are trying to get at. What you are trying to say.
AVA
Jess... just let her...
DR. WILSON
What are you missing?
JESS
Just let her what?
AVA
Speak.
DR. WILSON
What does missing mean to you? Does missing mean we lost something? If you lost something, if we lost something, if you lost something? Is it our fault?
JESS
Our fault?
AVA Jess, please.
JESS
No. It’s not our fault.
DR. WILSON
Do you think they lost themselves? It’s their fault they went missing?
JESS
I’m not saying that.
DR. WILSON
Maybe it’s their fault they are Indigenous. First Nations. Indian?
JESS
This is not about race, about the colour of your skin, how much money you have or where you were born.
JESS
Say something. Say anything.
AVA
I saw a Native girl on the highway.
JESS
What are you talking about?
AVA
I saw her.
DR. WILSON
Hitchhiking on a lone highway. She got into a car.
NATIVE STUDENT
Missing and Murdered.
JESS
It’s about decisions.
DR. WILSON
Having that drink at the bar.
Going to that party with friends.
NATIVE STUDENT
Missing and Murdered.
DR. WILSON
Now you want to be fair.
DR. WILSON
Then what’s it about?
JESS
It’s their decisions. It’s their fault.
You’re not being fair.
JESS
I don’t want to be attacked.
DR. WILSON
I am attacking you.
JESS
That’s what your people do.
DR. WILSON
That’s what my people do.
JESS
You make yourselves victims and then you blame society.
JESS
Why are you letting her attack me? Why aren’t you standing with me? What’s wrong with you?
DR. WILSON
Fists and hammers, Screwdrivers and knives.
AVA and NATIVE STUDENT
Missing and Murdered.
JESS
Look at me.
DR. WILSON
Matches lit. Flesh burnt. Seared skin.
AVA and NATIVE STUDENT Missing and Murdered.
JESS
Why won’t you look at me?
DR. WILSON
Aiming their guns, inserting their knives, loading their cocks—
AVA and NATIVE STUDENT Missing and Murdered.
JESS
We are the same.
DR. WILSON
Our bodies used. Cut up and fed to pigs. Carved up for the courts of law. So you can see better. Our bodies used. Buried in unmarked graves. Our bodies used. Buried by the side of the road.
JESS
You are... you are... You are less than me. I said it. I said what we are all thinking.
I said it. I say it. You are less than me. Less than us. You always have been.
AVA/NATIVE STUDENT/DEVON Missing and Murdered.
AVA/NATIVE STUDENT/DEVON Missing and Murdered.
DR. WILSON
You say it now. But I have heard you all my life.
DR. WILSON
Even when you are not speaking. You say it.
And I have heard you all my life.
JESS
I’m sorry. But there is a line.
DR. WILSON
A sorry line between us.
DR. WILSON
First a line on our land. Where you will be. And where we will be allowed to be.
ALL Missing and Murdered.
DR. WILSON
Then a line around our women. Who you will take. And discard.
ALL Missing and Murdered.
DR. WILSON
Then a line between ourselves and our children. Residential School. Foster Care. Scooping. Who have everything and who will have nothing.
ALL Missing and Murdered.
DR. WILSON
I am here to tell you there has never been a line on the long road until you drew it. We didn’t come to you. You came to us.
ALL Missing and Murdered.
DR. WILSON
Native women go missing because they are less in the eyes of those who have lost their humanity.
AVA
Or never had it.
DR. WILSON
Or never had it. Never understood we are on the same road.
DR. WILSON
If you can cry for yourself.
Cry now like you have lost your mother.
AVA/NATIVE STUDENT
And no one hears you.
DR. WILSON
And cry now like you have lost your child.
AVA/NATIVE STUDENT
And no one stands with you.
DR. WILSON
And cry now like you have lost your sister.
AVA/NATIVE STUDENT
And no one does anything.
DR. WILSON
And cry now like you keep losing them over, and over, and there is no end. No end.
ALL Missing and Murdered.
Track 5, Act I, Scene 4:
Ava and Jess
AVA
Jess?
JESS
Get away from me.
AVA
Jess, please.
JESS
Don’t look at me. Don’t look at me like that.
JESS
I wish you had died. I wish you were dead. I wish I had gone to your funeral so I could mourn you. Black. So I could cry on green grass. But look there are no tears. There will be no tears.
JESS
You’re the broken one, and you pity me?
AVA (overlapping)
I can’t be the same anymore. I can’t. I have to be more. I have to ask for more.
JESS (overlapping)
I don’t know you anymore. I don’t know who you are. We were like sisters. We were like blood. I loved you. I trusted you. We were the same.
AVA
I can’t be...
JESS
Me. You can’t be me...
AVA
Jess...
Track 6, Act I, Scene 5: Angus
ANGUS Snow, mother. Snow.
ANGUS (GITXSAN)
Nee dii 'nakwxt gyo'n. Gu hl han 'un ' y. Hla dim bagwi'm.
It’s not far now. Take my hand. We’ll be home soon.
THE NATIVE GIRL (GITXSAN)
Gal hlibh le biksxw hl si se'y. Yuk hl sigetxw diit.
My feet are too tired. They are crying.
ANGUS (GITXSAN)
Bax pteltxwin. Climb up.
ANGUS (GITXSAN)
Ndahl wilhl si se'en gyo'n? How are your feet now?
THE NATIVE GIRL (GITXSAN)
Hii so lagy axxwda. They are laughing.
ANGUS
I’m sorry. I should have looked after you. I should have made sure you were safe. Take my hand. Please take my hand.
ANGUS (GITXSAN)
Ga ha'win. Go’om. Ga ha'win.
Guuhl han'un'y 'min bets'y niin. Hugyaxet win t'k' ihlxw'm. See hluxsw'm tsim maaxs. T'aan lax noo'ohl'y. Luhogyax'm hl wii gyet.
Nee diitrna hl basx'm.
Nee dii basx agu.
Si 'wii 'nakhwdin nii'y.
Gimxdi'y niin.
Gimxdi'y niin.
Ga ha'win. Go’om. Ga ha'win. Dim guudiy hl han'un.
Goltsaxy di niin.
Hla ha'w'm dim welix'y niin.
Ga ha'win. K'e a god'n ga ha'win.
ANGUS (ENGLISH)
Come home. Home. Come home.
Take my hand and I will lift you up,
Like when we were children,
Caught in the snow.
You on my shoulders. We became a giant,
Afraid of no one.
Afraid of nothing.
You made me taller.
You are my sister. You are my sister.
Come home. Home. Come home. I will take your hand. I will lift you up. I will carry you home.
Come home. Please come home. Track 7, Act I, Scene 6:
Everything Has Changed in Me
THE NATIVE GIRL
Where are you going, girl?
DEVON Ava? AVA Devon.
DEVON
Who did you think it was? You okay?
AVA
I don’t know what to say. I don’t have the words. I’ve changed. Everything has changed in me. I don’t recognize myself.
DEVON I see you.
AVA Are you sure?
DEVON
You told me once I had to get serious. I had to make a choice about what was important to me. I said you were.
AVA
I wasn’t ready. I wanted things.
DEVON I wanted you.
AVA
I wanted things to be perfect. Not knowing perfect is not things. It’s in the living. It’s in the moment of who we are.
DEVON I see you. I want you. I want us.
AVA and DEVON
We’ll start this new beginning.
Track 8, Act I, Scene 7: Language Lesson
DR. ROSE WILSON (GITXSAN)
Nox. (Home)
AVA
Nox. (Home)
DR. ROSE WILSON (GITXSAN)
Gimxdi. (Mother)
AVA
Gimxdi. (Mother)
DR. ROSE WILSON (GITXSAN)
Kwsit. (Brother)
AVA
Kwsit. (Brother)
DR. ROSE WILSON (GITXSAN)
Maadam. (Fall)
AVA
Maadam. (Fall)
DR. ROSE WILSON (GITXSAN)
Gwoym. (Winter)
DR. ROSE WILSON (GITXSAN)
Spring. (Spring)
AVA
Spring. (Spring)
DR. ROSE WILSON (GITXSAN)
Sint. (Summer)
AVA
Sint. (Summer)
DR. ROSE WILSON (GITXSAN)
Ha’u. (Home)
AVA
Ha’u. (Home)
DR. ROSE WILSON
You speak like you were meant to speak our language.
AVA
I feel like I am remembering it. I feel I know it between my bones.
DR. ROSE WILSON
Words come to our voice to connect us to what is broken in us.
Now finding the space in us to heal. Here. Blood. Here. Bones. Here. Heart. Here. Voice.
AVA (GITXSAN)
Ha 'mi yaa (Thank you)
AVA
How do you say baby?
DR. ROSE WILSON (GITXSAN)
Hlguhlxw. (Baby).
AVA
Gwoym. (Winter)
AVA and DR. WILSON Here. Here.
Track 9, Act I, Scene 8: Hlguhlxw
AVA (GITXSAN)
Hlguhlxw. (Baby).
THE NATIVE GIRL (GITXSAN)
Hlguhlxw. (Baby).
AVA
What do you want from me? What do you want?
I have my life.
AVA
Don’t go. I’m sorry. Where did you go, girl?
THE NATIVE GIRL (ghostly audio)
Where did you go, girl?
AVA
I am right here.
THE NATIVE GIRL
I am right here.
Where is here for you?
THE NATIVE GIRL
Right now.
AVA
What do I look like to you?
THE NATIVE GIRL
Like you could be me. If I was you.
AVA
My head still hurts.
THE NATIVE GIRL I know.
AVA
And here. A broken wing.
THE NATIVE GIRL
A broken wing.
AVA
A broken promise.
AVA Sparrow.
THE NATIVE GIRL
A broken promise.
THE NATIVE GIRL Sparrow. AVA
So many dreams grounded not taking flight.
THE NATIVE GIRL
So many dreams grounded not taking flight.
AVA and THE NATIVE GIRL
So many dreams just underneath the earth.
Track 10, Act I, Scene 9:
A Gitxsan Wedding
AVA
Guhl han 'un ' y ii how 'miji ga'lut.
Take my hand so we can walk together into a new life.
AVA
Hlaa dip luugwendinhl gan siip'insxw gyoo'n.
Lukw'il siip'ini'y 'niin.
Lukw'il luu amhl goodi'y win ts'ilim guudi'y ehl didilsin.
Ga'ahl wilhl ḵ'ooxst, buxwin 'nuu'm ehl hle xeeḵt.
Hlimooyit 'nuu'm ehl luugwendinsi'm.
Lu-u si'aminhl goodi'y win hlaa dim dip siḵ'abihl wilphl dagago'otxu'm.
Dim sidaxgedin 'nii'y, needimdiin ga'luhl han'unin.
Hlimooyin 'nii'y ji hla wena'a'm go'ohl enduyini'm.
'Niin silgwe'e'y, dim am dim wila hlo'o'm laxgenaxs dip jiits' gans ye'e.
DEVON
We now celebrate love.
I love you very much.
I'm so happy you've taken me into your life.
The Maple trees are celebrating with us, dusting us with their confetti.
You make me very happy that we will make additions to our elders’ house.
You make me stronger and healthier.
I will not let go of your hand.
You will help me to seed and reap our garden.
You are going to be my partner in poverty and prosperity.
DEVON
Guudinhl goodi'y, ii sim hiisguxwsgitxwsi'y win sga'wen.
I am filled with happiness because we are now united as one.
AVA, DEVON, NATIVE STUDENT
Hlaa dip luugwendinhl gansiip'insxw gyoo'n. (We now celebrate love.)
AVA, DEVON, NATIVE STUDENT, DR. WILSON
Hlaa dip luugwendinhl gansiip'insxw gyoo'n. (We now celebrate love.)
Hlaa dip luugwendinhl gansiip'insxw gyoo'n. (We now celebrate love.)
Track 11, Act II, Scene 1a:
There Should Be No Sun
THE NATIVE MOTHER (GITXSAN)
Nee dii sgi dim hloxs.
(There should be no sun.)
Neetxw hloxs.
(No sun.)
Needii sgidim hloxs. Axxslaxhatxw.
(There should be no sun. No blue.)
THE NATIVE MOTHER (GITXSAN)
Hli ji ma wilaaxhl neemdii goyp'axan. Hli ji ma wilaax win neemdii gabitxwin.
(If you knew, you would not shine. If you knew, you would not show yourself.)
Joogan. Joog. (Shame. Shame.)
Daa'wihl hlguuhlxum hanaḵ'a'y.
Nda dim wila goyp'axan ehl nee huxwdii wilt go'o'y. (My daughter is gone.
How can you shine when she is no longer here with me?)
THE NATIVE MOTHER (GITXSAN)
Xslaxhatxwhl laxha. Xslaxhatxw. Hlen xslaxhatxw. Joog’n. Neemidii ga'ada?
Gahlaxwhl ts'axum laxhan ndahl ts'axum mi'y'y?
(Blue sky. Blue. So blue. Shame on you. Can you not see me? Under your perfect sky, where is my perfect girl?)
Track 12, Act II, Scene 1b:
The Mother's Aria
ANGUS Mother? Mother?
THE NATIVE MOTHER
When you were born, The sun rose bright Against a blue sky.
Clear day, clear night.
The sun and stars
Knew your name, Knew your heart, Knew you’d always come back to me.
You are my daughter. And you will come home.
When you were born, The sun rose bright Against a blue sky. Clear day, clear night. You are my daughter.
And you will come home. Now.
I will take your hand.
I will lift you up. And carry you home. Come home. Now. Ava.
Track 13, Act II, Scene 2: She Cries
AVA
She cries.
DR. ROSE WILSON
That’s what babies do.
AVA
She cries like there’s no end.
DR. ROSE WILSON
Maybe she needs to hear her voice to understand she is in this world now. New.
AVA
Where do you think she was before?
DR. ROSE WILSON
It’s not for me to say. It’s for her to know and let go of.
AVA
It’s hard to let go.
DR. ROSE WILSON
They say that, don’t they?
We know that, you and I.
But still, she has come to you. Perfect like this. It makes you think maybe the world she came from was perfect.
AVA
It’s hard to let go.
DR. ROSE WILSON
If she came from this, maybe this is where we go back to when we die.
AVA
Do you really think this?
DR. ROSE WILSON
When I hold her like this. When I look down on her like this.
When I hold her like this, the world gets bigger than all the things we can’t make sense of.
Track 14, Act II, Scene 3: Nightmare
AVA
I am running.
I am running.
A scream inside my throat
Rising up to the cool air. He is there. Or there. He is coming. He is coming.
THE NATIVE GIRL
The branches like long hands
Dig into my flesh. Long hands. Pointing like sharp knives Into my chest.
AVA
Below me, a shadowy step. My feet sinking and catching on Rocks and leaves and parts of trees. Sinking and stumbling, my legs like lead.
THE NATIVE GIRL
Above stars above, Please help me. AVA
Please hear me.
THE NATIVE GIRL
Trees, stand with me.
AVA
Please help me.
THE NATIVE GIRL
Please hear me. They are silent. They are stunned, Holding their breath
In a desperate prayer.
THE NATIVE GIRL
Please. Please. Please. Tell my Momma. Please. Please.
Tell my Momma. Tell my Momma.
Tell my Momma. I ran.
AVA
I am running. I am screaming, but no one hears me.
THE NATIVE GIRL
You better not hurt me!
AVA
I am running. I am screaming, but no one hears me.
AVA
You better not hurt me!
Track 15, Act II, Scene 4: Ava Wake Up
THE NATIVE GIRL
Momma, I ran. Mamma, I ran.
THE NATIVE GIRL
I want to live. I want to live. I want to live.
AVA
I’m sorry, Momma.
I’m sorry.
THE NATIVE GIRL
Oh Momma. Oh Momma. Momma. Momma.
THE NATIVE GIRL I want to go home.
AVA
He is there.
THE NATIVE GIRL
I want to go home.
AVA He is there.
THE NATIVE GIRL
I want to go home.
AVA
He is there. Right there.
THE NATIVE GIRL I want to go home.
DEVON
Ava, wake up...
Devon gathers her up in his arms.
DEVON
Ava, please wake up... It’s just a bad dream.
AVA
It’s not a dream. It’s a nightmare.
DEVON
A dream gone bad. A dark night.
AVA
Am I here? Am I really here with you?
DEVON
You’re here, Ava. You’re safe with me.
AVA
Touch me... Am I real? Am I alive? Please tell you are my husband. Tell me she is our baby. We have plans. We have our own lives.
DEVON
Ava, Ava you are alive. I am your husband. She is our baby. We are safe here. We have each other.
Track 16, Act II, Scene 5:
You Don't Have to Be Afraid of Me
AVA AND DEVON’S LIVING ROOM. NIGHT.
Devon is fast asleep, but the baby fusses, beginning to cry. Ava picks her up, pacing the room, trying to soothe her. Instead, Ava begins to cry herself.
AVA
Having you has scared me. Having you has made me realize I have everything to lose.
AVA
Please don’t cry. Everything will be all right. Momma’s here.
AVA Please.
Please go away.
Please don’t take her. She is not yours. Don’t look at her. She’s mine.
There are so many bad things in the world. So many bad things that can take what we love away.
THE NATIVE GIRL
I just want to hold her. And never let her go.
THE NATIVE GIRL
I’ll just hold her in my arms. I want to say I love you. I want to say I will never let anything bad happen to you.
You don’t have to be afraid of me.
THE NATIVE GIRL
You never told me what you called her.
What is her name?
AVA Sparrow.
THE NATIVE GIRL
Sparrow. Nel Dzay Ya (Sparrow).
Hlidaa sgedin, ts'etl'xw win gi'nitxw hloxs,
galxdilhl xslaxhatxum laxha,
goyp'axse,
galksi gabitxwhl axxw.
Hlidaa sgedin, ts'etl'xw win gi'nitxw hloxs.
Galxdilhl xslaxhatxum laxha...
goyp'axse galksi gabitxwhl axxw.
Hloxs ganhl bi'lust Wilaaxdiithl wen.
Wilaaxdiithl goodin.
Wilaaxdiithl genaxan. Wilaaxdiithl genaxan.
Dimedigwil luuyeltxwt go'o'y. Hlidaa sgedin, ts'etl'xw win.
Translation (with AVA):
When you were born, The sun rose bright Against a blue sky.
Clear day, clear night.
The sun and stars
Knew your name, Knew your heart, Knew you’d always come back to me.
When you were born, The sun rose bright Against a blue sky. Clear day, clear night.
NATIVE MOTHER (GITXSAN)
Hlguuhlxum hanaḵ'a'y 'niin. Gyoo'n. Ga ha'win. Ga ha'win. Ga ha'win. (My child is lost. Gone. Come home. Come home.)
ANGUS (GITXSAN)
Ga ha'win. Ḵ'e'e goodin ga ha'win. Ga ha'win. Ga ha'win. (Come home. Please, come home. Come home. Come home.)
THE NATIVE GIRL
I need to go home.
I am your daughter. Home.
I am your sister. Home.
I want to go home.
I want to go home.
I am your daughter.
I am your sister.
You are my brother. You will take my hand.
You will lift me up. And carry me home. Home.
I need to go home. Home. AVA
You are my daughter. You are my daughter.
I will take your hand. I will lift you up. And carry you home. Home.
Track 17, Act II, Scene 6: I Saw Your Eyes
HIGHWAY 16. FOREST. NIGHT. A RECKONING.
THE NATIVE GIRL
I wanted to be you so I could live. I had plans, like you have plans.
My head hurts.
AVA
I know. THE NATIVE GIRL
My arm hurts. AVA I know.
THE NATIVE GIRL
My private parts hurt.
AVA I know.
THE NATIVE GIRL
My heart hurts. AVA I know.
THE NATIVE GIRL/AVA
I saw her eyes. Did I tell you?
I saw her eyes in me. Did I tell you?
I saw her face. Did I tell you?
I saw her face in mine.
Track 18, Epilogue
I saw her life. Did I tell you?
I saw my life in her. I saw my life in her.
AVA
Laying here like this, she saw a sparrow in the branches.
She whispered her breath like the wind.
THE NATIVE GIRL (Ghostly) Sparrow.
AVA
Fly away.
THE NATIVE GIRL (Ghostly)
A broken sparrow still has wings.
AVA
A broken sparrow can still fly—home.
THE NATIVE MOTHER AND ANGUS (GITXSAN)
Ga ha'win. Home. Ga ha'win. Come home.
ANGUS (Shouting)
My sister was on her way home from school. She was going to graduate. She was going to learn her language.
She was going to go to law school to become a lawyer.
THE NATIVE MOTHER
Where did you go, girl? Where?
ANGUS
She had plans.
She wanted a family. She wanted to live.
She wanted to love.
THE NATIVE MOTHER
Where did you go, girl?
Where did you go, girl?
ANGUS
She wanted what every human being wants.
THE NATIVE MOTHER
How can our daughters live?
How can our daughters live?
She steps forward, looking directly at the audience.
THE NATIVE MOTHER
Do you see me?
Do you recognize me?
I am a mother.
If you have loved a child, I am you. We are waiting. We are missing. We are missing them. What are you missing?
SPECIAL THANKS FROM ATOM (Artists of The Opera Missing):
The Canada Council for the Arts, The Ontario Arts Council, The Plimpton Foundation, Latitude45 Arts Promotion, Leaf Music, City Opera Vancouver, Pacific Opera Victoria, Vincent Gogag, Charles Barber, Andy Moro, Barbara Scales, Jonathon Crow and Carey Newman. --
Further information about MISSING, its past and future productions, the work and the artists involved can be found at: https://www.latitude45arts.com/composer-catalogue-2/MISSING French texts contents of the CD booklet can be found at that same site.
Tous les textes se trouvent en français ici: https://www.latitude45arts.com/composer-catalogue-2/MISSING
