Omar: An Opera of the Past and Present, by Marame Gueye

Omar: An Opera of the Past and Present, by Marame Gueye Culture [email protected] Mon, 05/15/2023 - 16:11 Scene from the premiere of Omar at the Spoleto Festival in May 2022 / Photo by Leigh Webber / spoletousa.orgThe opera Omar, which had its North Carolina premiere at Carolina Performing Arts on February 23, 2023, is an intense journey into the life of its eponymous character. With the lead performed by Jamez McCorkle, Omar demonstrates Omar Ibn Said’s unwavering faith in Allah, the duress of enslavement, and the powers of writing. Omar Ibn Said / Wikipedia Created by Grammy Award winner Rhiannon Giddens, and co-composed with Michael Abels, who is behind such films as Get Out, Omar is based on the autobiography of Omar Ibn Said (also known as Uncle Moreau or Prince Omaroh), the only known slave narrative written in Arabic. Ibn Said was an enslaved African scholar who was captured in Fouta Toro in the delta of the Senegal River in 1807 at the age of thirty-seven and brought to Charleston, South Carolina. Prior to his capture, Omar had spent most of his life studying under prominent African scholars and was highly educated in theology, astronomy, mathematics, and more. Omar escaped his master and was later imprisoned in Fayetteville, North Carolina, where he was bought by James Owens, who also happened to be the brother of North Carolina governor John Owens. Omar described Owens as being kinder toward him. Impressed by his... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'

[ World Literature Today | 2023-05-15 21:11:26 UTC ]

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