A chamber opera scene commissioned by Susan Narucki for her collaborative opera project, Cuatro Corridos, in 2012.

Cuatro Corridos is a chamber opera addressing one of the most critical human rights issues of our time: human trafficking. Based on true events, it tells the story of women trapped in a cycle of prostitution and slavery in and around the San Diego/Tijuana border region and represents an unprecedented collaboration between internationally acclaimed Mexican and US-based creative artists.

Led by Grammy Award winning soprano Susan Narucki and noted Mexican author Jorge Volpi, the fully-staged production features original music by composers Hilda Paredes, Arlene Sierra, Lei Liangand Hebert Vázquez. Each composer gives voice to one of the four female characters by presenting one act in the hour-long drama.

Distinguished performers of new music, percussionist Ayano Kataoka/Steven Schick, pianist Aleck Karis, and guitarist Pablo Gomez, accompany Narucki in sharing the compelling stories of four women whose lives are scarred by human trafficking.  The powerful production, conceived by Narucki and artist-activist Karen Guancione uses iconic set elements and original graphic animation projected on a "border wall" that travels with the production.

 

Violeta - La tierra de le miel: Scene Four

In the last of the four corridos, the narrator tells the story of Violeta, a very young woman from Mexico who was trafficked along with the others. She tells the story of her friend Iris, who came with her from Mexico. As the scene progresses, Violeta tells us that Iris could not endure "twenty bodies on her body". She ran and ran, as if the devil were within her - yet she was caught, in the end.