2022 Emily & Sue: A Popera Film

The Tank presents screenings of "Emily & Sue," an a cappella pop opera film from L.A.-based composer Dana Kaufman and librettist Aiden K. Feltkamp on November 12, 15, 19 & 20. The film was directed by Ron Bashford, created in collaboration with Four/Ten Media and filmed in Emily Dickinson’s actual room. The popera album is out on November 11. Featured artists on both are soprano Jasmine Muhammad and Iris Vocal Trio. This project focuses on the little-known romantic relationship between Emily Dickinson and her sister-in-law, Susan Huntington Gilbert Dickinson. Letters between Emily and Sue, as well as Emily’s poetry, document an intimate relationship that was not socially acceptable or legally recognized in 19th-century Massachusetts. The plot of "Emily & Sue" extrapolates from Emily and Sue’s correspondences and explores the themes of isolation, queerness, and forbidden love.