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Treemonisha was composed by Scott Joplin - the "King of Ragtime" - in 1911. The opera draws on both European classical and Black folk traditions. Set in the late 1800s, the premise was radical: a Black community elects a woman to lead them. Joplin poured everything he had into this opera, but it was rejected by the establishment. He died penniless soon after. His orchestration for the opera was lost - only a piano/vocal score survives. In a joint US/Canada creative collaboration consisting primarily of artists of colour from both countries, Volcano is creating a new libretto that honours the politics of Joplin’s original, pairing it with an exciting new arrangement.
