the story

  True story. 1938. New York City. Lavinia Williams, child of the Harlem Renaissance, ballet dancer, is scandalously married to Lev Sergeivich Termen (Leon Theremin as he is known in English) Soviet inventor of the futuristic electronic musical instrument that bears his name, played with a wave of the hands through an electromagnetic force field. While her husband is threatened with arrest for vague “anti-Soviet” crimes, Lavinia is launched on a spiritual quest, taking her to a mystical subterranean outpost of vodou devotees, where she encounters her Afro-Caribbean ancestors...and her guiding artistic spirit. Madame Theremin is a historical opera that speaks to contemporary issues with excitement, intrigue, and humor to please both seasoned opera goers and new audiences.