2021 marks the 100th anniversary of the discovery of insulin, as well as composer Michael Park’s 30th anniversary of living with diabetes. Park is the composer of the world’s first (and only) interactive opera about type-1 diabetes, Diagnosis: Diabetes. Throughout November 2021, he will be streaming a recording of the opera online for free, including on World Diabetes Day (November 14) as part of the American Diabetes Association’s (ADA) online events.
In order to share his opera widely, Park reached out to diabetes organizations throughout North America. Featuring interviews, talkbacks, and even a watch-along, each livestream has been tailored to the unique audiences of BC Diabetes, We Are Diabetes, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, and Vancouver’s Erato Ensemble, who premiered the work in 2015.
About being included in the ADA’s event lineup for World Diabetes Day, composer Michael Park said, “The opera has allowed me to connect with people touched by type-one diabetes, to show them they’re not alone. To be included in the centennial celebrations of North America’s largest diabetes organization is a true honour and an amazing opportunity.”
Event Details:
Streaming Online for Free throughout November, 2021
Info and Links available at:
www.michaelpark.ca/diabetesopera
Background
Diagnosis: Diabetes is a 1-hour chamber opera that tells the story of Charlie, from his diagnosis as a young boy and as he grows up navigating life with T1D. The opera is fun, engaging, and lighthearted, without shying away from the realities of living with a chronic condition. By encouraging the audience to answer multiple-choice (musical) questions about diabetes, the work is educational, but also includes dynamic narrative scenes that allow the audience to experience what it’s like to actually have diabetes.
Originally written as Park’s doctoral thesis, the work was premiered in 2015 by Vancouver’s Erato Ensemble.
Michael Park is a composer and pianist with a keen interest in speech, humour, and collaboration. His music aims to give audiences an experience beyond the realm of traditional concert-going. Heralded for his innovative projects, his Ted Talk Experiencing Disease Through Music has been described as “moving, haunting, and an amazing translation of the disease”. He is the creative mind behind Diagnosis: Diabetes (the interactive chamber opera) and the Bouncy Castle Organ Extravaganza.