The Instrument, Romance, Bee Boy

The Industry celebrates the return of its LAB series, in partnership with REDCAT, featuring new works in opera by renowned artists Guillermo E. Brown, Carmina Escobar, and Matana Roberts.

BUY A FESTIVAL PASS! SEE ALL 3 WORKS FOR $35! 

Performed on the REDCAT stage, Guillermo E. Brown’s operatic triptych plays with time inside a maximalist, roulette-like approach. During Part 1, The Instrument—a boundary-pushing performance system fusing drumming, singing, electronics, and custom sensors—a 30-inch, gong-like projection surface becomes both drum and screen, encoding touch into sound and image to shape stories in the ether. In a second part, Romance, inspired by Claude McKay’s novel Romance in Marseilles, distorts storytelling through the manipulation of time, place, and space. Finally, in Bee Boy, Brown charts metamorphosis and community, letting change ring out as a percussion-driven rhythm of resistance. Joining Brown onstage alongside Industry company members are multi-instrumentalist, percussionist, and drummer Yusuke Yamamoto; violinist, singer, and composer Tylana Renga; vocalist, composer, and performance artist Mikaela Elson; and emcee/percussionist Allakoi Peete.

On February 22, there will be a post-show Q&A with Guillermo E. Brown and Carmina Escobar, moderated by Tim Griffin, Artistic & Executive Director of The Industry. 

Guillermo E. Brown and Carmina Escobar share a program. 

Please note: This program contains flashing lights, loud sounds, and mature content. 

LAB 2026 / Carmina Escobar / Matana Roberts