North Baldwin’s Brian Saville Performs in ‘RASA’

Brian Saville of North Baldwin performed in the chamber opera “RASA,” presented by the College of the Holy Cross’ Department of Theatre and Dance.

The production was set for April 27 through 29 at 7:30 p.m. in the Luth Concert Hall, a 400-seat multipurpose proscenium theater in the newly completed Prior Performing Arts Center.

Previously produced at Holy Cross in 1998, “RASA” is a large-scale multimedia production directed by Theatre Professor Lynn Kremer and featuring a composition by Music Professor Shirish Korde, both distinguished professors of humanities at Holy Cross. Inspired by the 1989 novel Jasmine by Bharati Mukherjee, the chamber opera follows a young immigrant woman on her journey from her native India to America, where she flees after the death of her fiancé. The score is composed of music from many different elements of Vedic chant, Tuva throat-singing, and North Indian musical forms.

“When I reread Bharati Mukherjee’s 1989 novel Jasmine, the book that inspired our earlier production of ‘RASA,’ I was amazed and saddened by how prescient the material remains in 2023,” said Kremer. “As a country, we are still very much struggling with issues of equality and immigration, so I am grateful to have the opportunity to showcase stories of the immigrant experience through my craft.”

Taking its inspiration from Asian theatrical and musical forms, this large-scale multimedia production weaves together sung and spoken texts, live and computer-generated electronic music, dance, and special visual effects, to showcase a story of startling metamorphoses and unexpected resurrections.

This production of “RASA” features performances by Greek Soprano Lito Messini, as well as Odissi Dancer Urmila Mallick, a noted artist, teacher, choreographer, and performer based in the New York City metropolitan area.