River of Light

Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s stories have been adapted for stage, film and dance, but this was the first time the prize-winning author has created a theatrical work from scratch. Meera, the opera’s central character, is Westernized and feels at home in Houston. She’s a busy executive; her American husband, Burton, is an artist.  Meera has drifted from Indian traditions in building her career. When she and Burton have their first child, though, she feels cut off from a whole tradition of women’s wisdom that has come down to her from her grandmother and mother. Meera wants her daughter’s first Diwali to be special, but she doesn’t have the lamps and foods the celebration requires, nor does she know where to find them.

River of Light employs a small cast and a five-player instrumental group, and its story unfolds in about 30 minutes. The score draws extensively on North Indian ragas and the quintet that accompanies “River of Light” mixes Western instruments with sitar and the tabla.