This was the first opera I’ve been to where the General Director (Timothy O’Leary) and Artistic Director (Francesca Zambello) received a standing ovation before the performance even started. It was well deserved, since mounting the opera was a feat of persistence completely unrelated to the opera itself.
I’ve been seeing great performances by the Washington National Opera (WNO) at the Kennedy Center in DC for years. Like most American opera companies, over the course of a season WNO performs a variety of classics and newer pieces, including 2025’s The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs. I’ve also appreciated their new takes on older operas, including a brave production of Fidelio in 2024 for which Ms. Zambello deserves credit.
Anyone even vaguely familiar with the American art scene understands that more well-known pieces subsidize the ability to perform new art. Unfortunately, the current managers of the Kennedy Center, the most prestigious performing arts center in the US capital, apparently do not understand this basic concept. Once they decreed that each individual production must be profitable, the WNO (which is a separate organization from the venue) reasonably decided to part ways.
Since this all went down in the middle of the season, I was concerned they would not be able to complete the final three productions. Despite the odds, the WNO was able to mount Treemonisha in March at a new venue at George Washington University, which led to that well-deserved pre-performance applause.
Treemonisha is not well-known, but it was composed by Scott Joplin in 1911. As a piece of African American culture, it is significant given its composer and for the topic given its date of composition. I completely understand why the WNO felt it was important to take on, despite the “dramaturgical and structural questions” surrounding the work. That quote, from Damien Sneed (who adapted the music), identifies the main problem: Joplin, famous for his ragtime, was both composer and librettist.
When I was younger, I wondered why the music and libretto of an opera were typically written by different people. I naively thought of writing the words as the simple part when compared to writing the music. That may be true depending on your point of view, but a bad libretto can hurt lovely music, which is what happened here. The story was too simplistic and the words did not do justice to where Joplin was obviously trying to go. I enjoyed the performance, but I would not be itching to see the opera again.
I do want to give props to set designer Lawrence E. Moten III, who designed an incredibly colorful set that leaned into the magical realism of the plot. I especially loved that the on-stage piano was painted to blend into the set. Director Denyce Graves (a legendary mezzo who is transitioning into directing) also deserves credit for handling the topics of African folk tradition sensitively.
The titular hero of the plot is a young Black woman who uses education and hard work to overcome ignorance. A fitting metaphor for WNO’s triumph.
Opera: Treemonisha
Composer: Scott Joplin (adapted by Damien Sneed & Kyle Bass)
Venue: Washington National Opera
Date: March 15, 2026
Link: https://washnatopera.org/treemonisha
Opera Nerd 
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