Written In Stone
Today’s most exciting artists offer four unmissable world premieres! Creative teams Jason Moran and Alicia Hall Moran, Huang Ruo and David Henry Hwang, Kamala Sankaram and A.M. Homes, and Carlos Simon and Marc Bamuthi Joseph present intimate and interwoven works.
World Premiere
What stories do our monuments tell? What legacies do they embody? What memories do they cement?
Four iconic places. Four creative teams. Four intimate stories. Some of America’s most exciting artists, musicians, composers, and librettists assemble to create four unmissable world premieres as a jewel in the crown of the Kennedy Center 50th Anniversary season. Inspired by Washington D.C.’s iconic monuments and the ideals embodied by President Kennedy, Written in Stone is a series of interwoven short works presented together in a single evening. Creative teams Jason Moran and Alicia Hall Moran, Huang Ruo and David Henry Hwang, Kamala Sankaram and A.M. Homes, and Carlos Simon and Marc Bamuthi Joseph offer intimate stories that celebrate diversity and acknowledge the struggles of today’s America.
This evening of captivating melody and story will feature performances from opera stars J’Nai Bridges, Rod Gilfry, and more, led by renowned conductor Robert Spano in his WNO debut!
The Rift
Huang Ruo, award-winning composer
David Henry Hwang, Tony Award-winning playwright, librettist, and screenwriter
The controversial origin of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is at the heart of this story featuring interconnected yet conflicting characters: Maya Lin, the Chinese American student architect of the memorial’s design; a Vietnam War veteran; a Vietnamese refugee; and a government official.