Ontario

Opera Addressing Missing Indigenous Women Coming to Kingston

By

Emma Kelly
May 6, 2026 9:48 am

The acclaimed opera Missing, is coming to the  Jennifer Velva Bernstein Performance Hall in Kingston, on Tuesday, September 29, 2026, at 7:30 PM. Single tickets are available June 1, 2026. Tickets are free, with registration required.

The opera, which explores the experiences of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, has been performed in various venues across Canada since its world premiere in 2017. Created by Métis and Dene playwright Marie Clements and Juno Award-winning composer Brian Current, the chamber opera is performed in both English and Gitksan, an Indigenous language spoken in the traditional territory along the Highway of Tears in British Columbia.

The production serves as a powerful reflection on a national tragedy, giving voice to stories set in Vancouver‘s Downtown Eastside and along the Highway of Tears, a 724-kilometre stretch of road where many Indigenous women have disappeared or been found murdered. Marie Clements has stated that the production is designed to move the issue beyond being seen solely as a concern for Indigenous communities, describing it as a Canadian story that everyone is responsible for acknowledging.

The opera features a cast that has included sopranos Melody Courage and Cait Wood, mezzo-sopranos Marion Newman, Andrea Ludwig, and Michelle Lafferty, tenor Asitha Tennekoon, and baritone Evan Korbut. Since its debut, it has been described as a landmark for the opera world and a vital piece of theatre.

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