“For me, the center of the evening is a person who arrives at an inner contentment with themselves. (…)”
“But when you experience the complete story, everyone can rediscover themselves in Hannah, regardless of the gender identity she has.”
This is, for director Rahel Thiel, the quintessence of the 70-minute opera “As One” by Laura Kaminsky, which premiered on September 4, 2014 in Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Fisher Space. The work about discovering a trans identity and its joyful self-acceptance has been staged in more than 65 productions around the world — from Sweden to Australia, in Germany including Regensburg and Giessen. Now also at Semper Zwei, the studio stage of the Semperoper Dresden. The libretto comes from the experienced Mark Campbell, who also wrote the text for Paul Moravec’s Stephen King opera “The Shining,” currently being performed in Regensburg and Stralsund, and Kimberly Reed.
Queere Themen in Einrichtungen der Hochkultur
A development thread is currently becoming visible on a broad basis within cultural institutions of the highest order — much as fifty years ago with gay and lesbian self-liberation. First came the realization that there are deviations from the heteronormative mainstream. In a second wave follows the fight for recognition, then questions about how those identities feel and the fragile social roles they occupy. The more important the engagement with the topic becomes, because only in 2022 did the World Health Organization officially remove transgender identity from the ICD catalog of mental illnesses. In 1930 Lili Elbe underwent at the Dresden Women’s Clinic — thus not far from the performance venue — one of the world’s first documented gender-affirming operations.
Courage to Be Unique
For conductor Naomi Shamban, Hannah’s narrative is primarily the arc from fear to courage. In “As One,” the focus is not so much on the process of transition or mastering a new identity, but rather on recognizing the difference in adolescence, the transformation, and the self-discovery that comes with it. The “younger” Hannah is baritone Gabriel Rollinson, while the “older” Hannah is mezzo-soprano Dominika krabalová. The string quartet in Semper Zwei, alongside the playing square with the white curtains (set by Fabian Wendling), has two seating positions and moves through the wide, dark space. Only when Hannah experiences a transphobic assault do the musical voices rise. Until then, they form with the vocal lines a long, predominantly calm and cohesive undercurrent.
Direct link | Trailer for the opera
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Kaminsky’s opera portrays the struggle of a duplicated figure with herself. In the first 50 minutes, it does not spiral into chaos because the Hannah who is a student in a blouse under a jacket and the Hannah after the transition are not in a self-destructive clash, but rather discuss with sympathy. They are psychologically and emotionally interwoven. Projected captions (Video: Clemens Walter) demonstrate, through proximity to others, the development, the self-understanding, and the growth of Hannah’s personality.
Dialogue Between External and True Identity
The hormone treatment in the piece passes quickly and takes place behind the curtain. In a broad cantilena, the inner changes and the psychological switch from outward manhood to holistic womanhood are explored. In this sequence, the production reaches its most urgent point. Thiel often brings the two characters into physical proximity; they are more drawn to each other than to the outside world. They wear softly flowing garments (costumes: Judith Philipp) — the young Hannah in bright white, the older in deep purple. All — including the string quartet and the conductor — wear red hair.
Thus, this development of personality remains on the social margins and, in itself, forms a distinct experiential cosmos. A wooden table and a few carefully chosen props were used for the production’s design. The gray, rough world outside is banished. In this sphere, the expansive development of self suffices on its own, much like in a traditional opera where emotions, faced with stark opposition, create their own world. The result, in the second performance at the full Semper Zwei, is poetic and complete. But after the initial attempts at flirtation in the new female role, Hannah cannot feel secure. She experiences confrontations and violence.
Further performances of “As One” at the Semperoper are scheduled for June 25 and 26, 2026, at 8:00 PM, with a final performance on June 28 at 4:00 PM.
