Building a Loving Community: The Story Behind the Opera

OVERVIEW

Building a Loving Community: The Story Behind the Opera

The Virginia Opera and Richmond Symphony are co-commission Loving v. Virginia – an operatic retelling of the groundbreaking United States Supreme Court case centered around the interracial marriage of Mildred and Richard Loving. Composer Damien Geter and librettist Jessica Murphy Moo will create the opera which will be premiered in venues across Virginia in 2025. Between now and then, the ICA at VCU will be hosting and co-organizing a series of public talks and workshops to explore the creative process and the stories behind the work and the case. This series begins with insights into the writing of the libretto, and reflections on the legal and political legacy of Loving v. Virginia the case and the decision.

Building a Loving Community: Legal Panel
7pm Nov 9

As the artistic process to create this new opera begins, what can we know about the events that inspired it? Who were the couple at the center of the case, and what did Loving vs Virginia mean for race, law and society in the United States? It could be said Brown v. Board of Education in 1954 (which decided against school segregation) and Loving in 1967 are the bookends to an important period in civil rights history. What was the comparative impact of those decisions? What condemnation of white supremacy do they represent? And what did Loving, in particular, mean for later Supreme Court decisions such as Roe v. Wade (on abortion rights) and Obergefell v. Hodges (on same-sex marriage)? On this panel, legal and political thinkers Kim Forde-Mazrui and Kevin Gaines, from the University of Virginia, and VCU’s John Aughenbaugh aim to answer these and other questions.

Building a Loving Community: Writing the Libretto
2-3pm Nov 10

The ICA is excited to be working with the Virginia Opera and Richmond Symphony to commission an opera on the story of Loving vs Virginia. The opera will premier across Virginia over two years from now but you have the opportunity to see aspects of the process as they are made public along the way.

Join us at the ICA as we host the first of these opportunities: a panel discussion on the legal and political history and legacy of the Loving vs Virginia case and decision. As the artistic process to create this new opera begins, what can we know about the events that inspired it? Who were the couple at the center of the case, and what did Loving vs Virginia mean for race, law and society in the United States?