The Santa Fe Opera: Music, Art and Tailgating

Atomic Science Meets The Art of Opera

The Santa Fe Opera 2018

The Santa Fe Opera Season in 2018 offered a most interesting selection. I was fortunate enough to attend two shows: Doctor Atomic and Madame Butterfly.

Promptly at eight o’clock, the sound of the horns rose from the orchestra as the lights dimmed.  And so started one of the most beloved operas of all the, Madame Butterfly. The performance was simply sublime. Words can do no justice to the beauty and song of this classic production.

A bit more controversial, however, was Dr. Atomic.

Doctor Atomic is an opera by the contemporary American composer John Adams, with libretto by Peter Sellars. Doctor Atomic premiered in San Francisco in 2005. It’s the story of the 24 hours before the first atomic bomb explosion takes place in New Mexico. 

The production received an enormous amount of build up and press.  Discussions of war, morality and the role of science filled the air. Scientists from Los Alamos, authors, celebrities and Native Americans offered their thoughts on the events that changed not just their world, but the entire world.

Behind the scenes at the Opera, “The Gadget” (as the first atomic bomb was called) was built–a massive steel ball that would be suspended from the ceiling for the entire performance. With the lights of Los Alamos twinkling in the background, the set was almost surreal. 

The History Behind Doctor Atomic

It was at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in 1945, where scientists came together to develop the atomic bomb under the guidance of J. Robert Oppenheimer.

“Oppenheimer was given undreamed-of resources, huge armies of people, and as much money as he could spend in order to do physics on the grand scale, in order to create this marvelous weapon. And it was a Faustian bargain if ever there was one. Of course, we are still living with it. Once you sell your soul to the devil, there is no going back on it.”          

–Wired Magazine

The process of building and testing atomic weapons would have numerous ramifications for the history of both the country and of New Mexico.

The primary test site was at Trinity, which is located at the northern border of the White Sands Missile Range. Here, on the Trinity site, named by Oppenheimer after a poem by John Donne, a base camp was installed for the world’s first nuclear test. The site was very primitive, but within commuting distance of Los Alamos where the scientists lived.

Wartime urgency and secrecy, combined with the remote locale, made for difficult conditions. Men camped first in tents, and later a rudimentary camp was built. It was here that the bomb would be assembled and tested. 

The process was anything but smooth. From the  Atomic Heritage Foundation:

“Much of the preparation for the Trinity test encountered setbacks. The challenges faced in developing the Trinity site were numerous and multifaceted, and there were often close calls that could have jeopardized the outcome of the entire project. Some were almost comical, such as when Kenneth Greisen was pulled over for speeding in Albuquerque while he was driving detonators to Trinity four days before the test. He could have been delayed by several days had the officer checked the contents of his trunk.

A more ominous event was the actual process of winching the Gadget to the top of its tower at the test site. As it was being raised to the top, it came partially unhinged and began to sway. Many observers were stricken with panic at the possibility of the bomb accidentally falling from the tower and detonating, but the Gadget was eventually righted and made its way to the top of the tower without further incident.”

On July 16, 1945 the “Gadget” was detonated. The mushroom cloud climbed nearly eight miles high and left a crater over 1,000 feet wide. The test was so powerful that the sand melted in the blast and formed a green glasslike substance called Trinitite.

The 24 hour period preceding the atomic blast is the basis for the opera Dr. Atomic.

The Aftermath 

Doctor Atomic brought out the mixed and often raw emotions that emerged from the nuclear era in New Mexico, where world class scientists labored under the secrecy of war, while local people saw their land and lives inconceivably and irrevocably destroyed.

How does one reconcile centuries of Pueblo tradition with an atomic bomb that forever altered the land and the people’s sacred relationship with it?

How does one balance wartime urgency and human decency?

It’s a drama of historic proportions that is still playing out today. 

And many of the players are still seeking a way to heal.

Healing Through Music, Dance and Prayer

“Art is a wound turned into light.” ~ Georges Braque

Art takes many forms. Dance is one.

In the Pueblo culture, ceremonial dances are ancient prayers. These dances are learned through practice and performance, and thus handed down from one generation to the next. They are considered sacred. Some dances are seldom if ever shared with outsiders.

At the performance of Doctor Atomic, the people of the Santa Clara, San Ildefonso and Tesuque Pueblos came together in prayer, in the form of a Corn Dance.

They were joined on stage by a group of Downwinders, the people who lived downwind from the blast, and to this day are still dealing with the repercussions of the radioactive fallout.

Together this stage performance was intended as a community, cultural and spiritual offering towards healing the wounds of the atomic era. 

This confluence of opera, history and the peoples of New Mexico offered a difficult look at the past, and the diverse factions that make up this eclectic state. The promise of science versus the deep rooted connection to the earth; the urgency of war versus a centuries old way of life; the intellect of building the bomb versus the very human experience of its repercussions. New Mexico is a place where ancient tradition and modernity live side by side. 

Local interest was naturally very high and the history of Doctor Atomic found its way into various lectures and programs in the lead up to the actual performance. The Lensic Theatre, a study in Moorish and Spanish Renaissance style architecture, was the primary venue for the talks.  

While I adored the ongoing education and discussions, for me, the actual performance lacked all the things I love about opera: the elaborate costumes and the beautiful music that transport one in sight and sound.  The ominous musical score cast a heavy sense of doom over the performance.  But perhaps that was as it should be.

But my advice, particularly if you are buying expensive seats, is to stick to the fabulous classics. You won’t be disappointed.

Looking Back, Looking Ahead

My experience with the 2018 season at the Opera was, overall, terrific. It’s now on the annual must do list and, among other shows, The classic La Boheme is on the 2019 agenda.

The performance of Doctor Atomic underscored the unique the peoples, histories and experiences of New Mexico. In this varied land, ancient history and timeless geography blend with modern day realities. Descendants of the Pueblos keep their culture alive, even as the Los Alamos Labs continue in their scientific quests. To the south, the movie industry flourishes with studios from Netflix and NBC Universal. Rocket scientists, artists, Native Americans and people from around the world are somehow drawn to this quirky culture.

From O’Keeffe to Oppenheimer, it’s a close knit circle of intellectuals, artists and eccentrics that have paved the future of New Mexico.  Perhaps given this eclectic backdrop, it’s not entirely surprising that a performance like Doctor Atomic raised so much interest during the 2018 season.  I’m grateful for the reminder of our history, and for the look both back and forward, hopefully in healing.