Every Voice with Terrance McKnight

A Radio Special: Mozart’s "Abduction from the Seraglio"

In the prime of his illustrious career, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart ran in the realm of prominent, Black visionaries. But after composing “Zaide,” an unfinished opera depicti

A Radio Special: Verdi’s "Aida”

At the heart of “Aida” is an African love story: the Ethiopian princess Aida is torn between loyalty to her country and passion for her captor, the Egyptian general Radam

A Radio Special: Verdi's "Otello"

“Otello” debuted in Milan in 1887, just two years after European nations gathered in Berlin to agree on a campaign to carve up and colonize the African continent for thei

A Radio Special: Mozart’s "The Magic Flute"

In this radio special of “Every Voice with Terrance McKnight,” enjoy this season’s journey into Mozart’s "The Magic Flute," its investigation into the overlooked characte

Abduction from the Seraglio: Revelations

With such a dark past, what does the future look like for opera as an art form? From Verdi to Mozart, many of opera’s most celebrated works famously reduce people of Afri

Abduction from the Seraglio: A Blind Eye

Mozart’s “The Abduction from the Seraglio” was first heard in Vienna in 1782, commissioned by Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II to cater to the German-speaking audience of the

Abduction from the Seraglio: A Dream Interrupted

In the prime of his illustrious career, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart ran in the realm of prominent, Black visionaries, composed the radical (unfinished) opera “Zaide” depictin

Abduction from the Seraglio: Freedom and Justice for Some

All too often, characters of African descent in operas written during the 18th and 19th centuries are defined as the institution of slavery and the idea of inferiority. 

Aida: America’s Confederates in Egypt

When “Aida” premiered in Egypt in 1871, it delivered some not-so-subtle messaging in the dramatization of light-skinned Egyptians dominating dark-skinned Ethopians. Withi

Aida: 100% Egyptian Cotton

“Opera has always been not just adjacent to colonial conquest, but perhaps … quite a large part of it.” Pranathi Diwakar, Every Voice with Terrance McKnight researcher. 

Aida: Off the Chain

At the heart of Verdi's opera “Aida” is an African love story, where an Egyptian general and an Ethiopian princess fall in love. It premiered in Cairo in 1871, but the tr

Aida: Red Heart, White Eyes

In Giuseppe Verdi’s “Aida,” Princess Aida is torn between her homeland of Ethiopia (ruled by her father, King Amonasro) and her captor, the Egyptian leader Radamès who lo

Otello: The North Star

As the one Black man in Shakespeare’s play and Verdi’s opera, Otello was not only tokenized, but villainized, criticized and minimized. With such an emphasis on Otello’s

Otello: Black Handkerchiefs Matter

Giuseppe Verdi's Otello rose from enslavement to the ranks of army general and marries an aristocratic Venetian woman. It’s difficult  to imagine the rich cultural herita

Otello: Haters

This week on Every Voice with Terrance McKnight, we go deeper into Giuseppe Verdi's character of the “Moor of Venice." Otello is a celebrated general in the Venetian army

Otello: UNMOORED

“Otello” debuted in Milan in 1887, just two years after European nations gathered in Berlin to agree on a campaign to carve up and colonize the African continent for thei

The Magic Flute: Recycling

The use of blackface is a dying trend, but it was fundamental to one of the most popular operas of all time, Mozart’s hit comedic opera, “The Magic Flute“.  Over the las

The Magic Flute: He Said, She Said

In Mozart's "The Magic Flute," Monostatos is smitten by the white princess Pamina, whom he is supposed to be guarding under the orders of the high priest Sarastro. His de

The Magic Flute: Invisible Man

At over 200 years old, “The Magic Flute” remains a classic opera which continues to be taught, studied, and performed in sold-out venues around the world. But with more t

The Magic Flute: From Morehouse … to the opera house with Monostatos

Monostatos the Moor in Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” is one of the most famous representations of Blackness in opera - a genre with limited representation of characters of A