From September through May, Guerilla Opera creates a space for a collective of artists developing texts for musical performances to convene virtually as a supportive creative community.
Meeting remotely via Zoom twice a month for nine months, these inclusive and encouraging writing groups will explore developing a completed draft of a script intended to be performed with music. You'll be able to choose between our every-other-week Tuesday class, which meets 8-10 pm Eastern, and our every-other-week Thursday class, which meets 3-5 pm Eastern. Classes begin September 8 and 10.
Participants will develop and hone their own unique approaches to writing musical text, have their pieces workshopped by the group through table reads and other formats, and support one another as peers by acting as readers and providing feedback for the work of others. At the end of the Writing Collective program, each participant will have a full reading of their text.
The participant fee for the Writers Collective is $1,115 per person.
Early bird registration (by 7/15/26) and returning participants receive a 5% discount, equaling $1,059.25. There is a 2% PayPal processing fee if paying by credit card. This fee will be waived if payment is made in full before Day 1. Limited financial aid is available.
Questions? Email Guerilla Opera Teaching Artist in Libretto Writing Kendra Preston Leonard at kpleonard@guerillaopera.org.
Thank you, Summer Libretto Labs applicants!
We’re looking forward to writing with you!
Session 1: Intro to Libretto-Writing
A focus on the fundamentals of writing text to be sung.
Learn the necessary vocabulary for writing text to be sung
Get a thorough grounding in how the creation, development, and production process work in opera, musicals, and song
Experiment with different narrative modes
Explore resources for researching topics you want to write about
Practice writing and editing your own work; and engage in group feedback using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process.
We’ll also talk about the industry and the issues it faces, and what it means to be an activist artist. Session 1 participants should expect to spend 3-5 hours a week on reading and writing assignments.
Dates/Times:
Tuesday Cohort: June 9, 16, 23, 30 8-10pm ET
Thursday Cohort: June 11, 18, 25, July 2 3-5pm ET
Session 2: Writing the Libretto Scene
You’ve learned the basics, put your knowledge to practice by creating and developing a complete scene — or scenes!
Learn techniques for outlining and scaffolding a narrative and methods of assessing the success of your goals in arias, songs, and other segments of your scene and the scene overall
Learn how to build and resolve narrative tension
Create and develop characters and contexts and express emotions; and take vocalists and vocality into consideration as you write.
Learn approaches to editing and revising your work; working with composers and performers; and identifying and developing your personal aesthetic as an activist artist writing for the voice.
We’ll study a number of recent libretti; engage in critique using Liz Lerman’s Critical Response Process; and discuss current issues in the industry in-depth. Session 2 participants should expect to spend 5-7 hours a week on reading and writing assignments.
Dates/Times:
Tuesday Cohort: July 7, 14, 21, 28 8-10pm ET
Thursday Cohort: July 9, 16, 23, 30 3-5pm ET
About our facilitator
Kendra Preston Leonard is a lyricist and librettist who tells stories about empowerment, resilience, and compassion. Inspired by history, language, nature, and myth, Leonard has worked with numerous composers to create new opera and art song. Current opera projects include Protectress, with composer Jessica Rudman; This is Jane with composer Angela Elizabeth Slater; and she who will trouble you all night with Rosśa Crean. Recently premiered works include Sense of Self, created with composer Lisa Neher and premiered by Opera Elect in 2021; Waters Rising, with composer Tim Hick, commissioned by Arts Capacity and Walker State Faith and Character Based Prison; Marie Curie Learns to Swim, with music by Jessica Rudman, performed by Hartford Opera Theater in 2018; and The Harbingers, with music by Rosśa Crean, premiered in 2019. In 2021, she and Neher created a series of micro-operas for Neher’s One Voice Micro-Opera Project, featuring singers Zach Finkelstein in Now Available; Margaret O’Connell in Woman Waits with Sword; Hugo Vera in Wide Awake in the New City; and Audrey Yoder in Par for the Course. You can follow her at https://kendraprestonleonard.hcommons.org/.