Opera Parallèle Presents
Salt & Spirit: An Operatic Experience Rooted in Gullah-Geechee Spirituals
November 14-21, 2026
Z Space’s Steindler Stage
Opening Opera Parallèle's 17th season, Salt & Spirit is a powerful world premiere inspired by the enduring musical traditions of the Gullah-Geechee people of the Carolinas. Rooted in a rare collection of nineteenth-century spirituals and reimagined through a vibrant contemporary score that blends classical, jazz, and traditional influences into an unforgettable theatrical experience.
Co-created by acclaimed tenor Victor Ryan Robertson and Opera Parallèle Creative Director Brian Staufenbiel, Salt & Spirit celebrates a culture whose songs preserve memory, identity, and hope across generations. More than a performance, it is an act of remembrance—revealing how music can safeguard history, strengthen community, and carry stories that refuse to be forgotten.
Rich with soaring voices, evocative imagery, and spoken word, Salt & Spirit honors the resilience of the Gullah-Geechee people while inviting audiences to reflect on the legacies we inherit and the stories we choose to pass forward.
Show Schedule
Saturday, November 14: 7:30pm
Sunday, November 15: 3pm
Thursday November 19: 7:30pm
Saturday, November 21: 7:30pm
STICK POUNDING: Rhythm of the Ancestors
Wednesday, November 18
6:00 p.m. (Doors open at 5:30 p.m.)
Z Space, 450 Florida Street
Learn the basics of Gullah Stick Pounding in this free workshop led by Melanie DeMore. We will create a foot stomping, hand-clapping rhythmic community and combine it with singing spirituals and songs of protest and peace. Participants will learn about Gullah/Geechee culture through its dynamic music and rhythmic heart. We will, as a community, turn the whole place into a living, breathing drum.
About Melanie DeMore
Melanie DeMore is a three-time Grammy-nominated singer, composer, choral conductor, and vocal activist who believes in the power of voices raised together. A sought-after workshop leader and music director, she has led choirs and community groups across North America and beyond. A founding member of the Grammy-nominated Linda Tillery and the Cultural Heritage Choir, DeMore uses music as a tool for healing, connection, and social change, believing that “a song can hold you up when there seems to be no ground beneath you.”
