O,D,E

O Death! I shall become!

Meditation is a powerful force. O used it for liberation, until their peaceful passing. Their lover E is led astray by power and seeks to bring O back from the dead. They manage—but do not recognise O in their new body, so seek to become Death themself. Death is just doing her job. Until she isn’t. 

O,D,E is a new experimental opera by Sage J Harlow (aka Sage Pbbbt). A queer, occult retelling of Orpheus & Eurydice, grounded in the suffering that comes with simply being alive. Exploring gender and identity, characters change bodies, enter contracts with eternity and howl through the libretto as they do so. 

Underpinned by live music from an ensemble of noisemakers who bring a new meaning to “pit band”, O,D,E fuses the grandeur of opera with lo-fi, weirdo improv and metal aesthetics. 

Extended Content & Trigger Warning

Please read here for more details on the theme and trigger warnings for O,D,E (including spoilers).

• Writer

  Sage J Harlow

• Producer

  Josten Myburgh

• Dramaturg

  Jeremy Neideck

• Performer

  Michael Banting
  Lara Dorling
  Tiffany Ha
  Charis Postmus

• Musicians

  Craig Pedersen
  Michael Terren
  Naoko Uemoto
  Eduardo Cossio
  Saskia Willinge
  Jane Stark
  
  

• Costumes

  Tia Tokić (Bosa)

• Stage Manager

  Catherine O'Donoghue

• Set

  Kelsey D

• Lighting Designer

  Jolene Whibley

• Graphic Design

  Oliva Joi Rawlings

• Assistant Directors

  Liam Longley
  Harper Nguyen