Control, Choice, and Resistance
Join Detroit Opera for a series of free community events leading up to The Handmaid’s Tale. Moderated discussions with local experts will explore key themes from the opera — including female disempowerment, reproductive rights, and control—examining how patriarchal systems use religious extremism and political power to oppress women, as well as themes of survival, memory, and resistance. Select events will include a musical component from a Detroit Opera Resident Artist.
EVENTS
WEDNESDAY / FEBRUARY 04 / 6:30PM
Moderator: Kim Trent, Writer & Activist
Panelists: Carolyn Cassin, President & CEO, Michigan Women Forward; Poppy Hernandez, Executive Director, Office of Global Michigan | Chief Equity & Inclusion Officer, Governor’s Office; Darlene King-Turner, CEO, The Unity Collaborative
Detroit Public Library—Fine Arts Gallery | 5201 Woodward Ave., Detroit
REGISTER
TUESDAY / FEBRUARY 10 / 6:30PM
The Handmaid’s Tale Community Talk
Moderator: Simone Chess, Director, Center for Gender and Sexuality and Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies, Associate Professor of English, Wayne State University
Panelists:
Dr. Jack Blaszkiewicz, Associate Professor, Music History, Wayne State University
Kevin Deegan-Krause, Professor. Political Science, Wayne State University
Sylvia Taschka, Professor of Teaching, Department of History, Wayne State University
Wayne State University—Schaver Hall Music Recital Hall | 480 W Hancock, Detroit
TUESDAY / FEBRUARY 17 / 6:30PM
Alternatives For Girls | 903 W. Grand Blvd, Detroit
WEDNESDAY / FEBRUARY 25 / 4:00PM
Operatic Reimagining of The Handmaid’s Tale: Gender, Power, and Reproductive Justice
In 1985, Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, envisioned a theocratic regime that systematically stripped women and gender-diverse people of their reproductive freedom. Although Atwood’s narrative is fiction, the realities of forced reproduction and restricted bodily autonomy have long impacted women of color, low-income women, disabled women, and people of diverse gender identities, making this story compelling and profoundly relevant today. The novel’s evolution into a television show and, now, an opera reflects its sustained cultural and political resonance. This event, co-hosted by Detroit Opera and the University of Michigan’s Center for History, Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences, and Ethics in Medicine, will feature a free, moderated discussion about the operatic adaptation of The Handmaid’s Tale. Together, we will explore how artistic representations can stimulate important conversations about reproductive justice, structural power, and the ongoing struggles faced by women and people of marginalized genders. Through centering the role of art in social critique and activism, this event aims to deepen understanding of gender and sexuality in the context of contemporary debates surrounding reproductive rights.
Moderator: Karin Waidley, Ph.D.
Panelists:
Stephanie Havey
Lisa Harris, MD, PhD
Amy Hecht-Zizes, MSW
Greer Hamilton, PhD
University of Michigan—Forum Hall in Palmer Commons | 100 Washtenaw Ave, Ann Arbor
WEDNESDAY / MARCH 04 / 6:00PM
Yoga: Reset and Restore
In partnership with the YMCA, join yoga instructor Janet Colson for a gentle, mindful yoga practice designed to help you reset, restore, and recalibrate. Open to all bodies and experience levels, this session begins with focused breathing, then progresses through movement that includes stretching, strength, and balance. Attention to physical sensation and shifts in energy is emphasized through somatic awareness. The practice concludes with a guided visualization for rest and renewal before/after a powerful performance.
Black Box Theater, Detroit Opera House| 1526 Broadway St, Detroit
MONDAY / MARCH 09 / 6:00PM
After-Care Reflection
For attendees of The Handmaid’s Tale, this virtual aftercare session will allow participants the time to reflect and process their experiences after the performance. This session will provide compassionate space for both active and passive reflection, as well as create a community dialogue for shared experiences and conversations.
Participants will be emailed a Zoom link prior to the event. Click below to register.
REGISTER
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