Octavia E. Butler’s Parable of the Sower

Parable of the Sower is a triumphant, mesmerizing work of rare power and beauty that illuminates deep insights on gender, race, and the future of human civilization.

This fully-staged opera brings together over 30 original anthems drawn from 200 years of black music to recreate Butler’s sci-fi, Afrofuturist masterpiece live on stage.

With music and lyrics by Toshi Reagon and Bernice Johnson Reagon, this compelling work gives life to Butler’s acclaimed science fiction novel of the same name.

Parable of the Sower takes place in a not-so-distant America where violence, greed, and disregard for the planet’s resources collide with the 21^st century’s climate crisis, driving society to the brink of extinction.

After losing her family and home, Lauren Oya Olamina ventures out into the
unknown. What begins as a desperate fight for survival leads to something more profound: a startling vision of human destiny that births the seeds of a new belief system.