Comic. Opera. The Many Deaths of Laila Starr, Minnesota Opera, and the Art of Adaptation

Features Henry Dykstal | September 10, 2026 "I enjoyed the evening very much. Your piece has nothing to do with my movie, it merely has the same story." -Ingmar Bergman to Stephen Sondheim, as recounted in Finishing the Hat MN Opera First Listen of “The Many Deaths of Laila Starr”. May 21, 2026. MN Opera First Listen of “The Many Deaths of Laila Starr”. May 21, 2026. The date is May 21st, 2026, and I am sitting in the Luminary Arts Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In front of me is an orchestra, instruments including what you’d see in any given classical piece, but also a DJ turntable. On stage right the principal actors are sitting in chairs, and behind them is a bleacher for the secondary performers and the chorus. They’re packed together so tightly it's hard to tell if they’re standing or sitting. The conductor is doing soundcheck. He calls out scenes, pages, measures, bars. The musicians respond at his signal, no delay in response except for the turning of pages. Kamala Sankaram, the composer, sits with her copy of the score and takes notes. I sit and listen. The vocalists, on occasion, throw out a phrase. I know these words. I’ve read these words. But now I’m hearing them sun...