Stained Glass

An augmented reality opera in one act by composer Shawn Crouch and librettist Dana Kaufman

Stained Glass is an augmented reality opera that tells the story of Mamah Borthwick, the romantic and intellectual partner of famed American architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Borthwick, who left her husband and two young children to be with Wright, yearned for an intellectual and creative life beyond early-1900s domesticity. Excoriated in the press as amoral and unfeeling, Borthwick and her two young children were brutally murdered at Taliesin, the visionary home Wright designed for them, in 1914.

The opera premiered at the Knight Center for Music Innovation in March 2024 in Coral Gables, Florida.

Performing Forces:
-Mamah Borthwick (soprano)
-Lizzie Borthwick/Ellen Key (mezzo-soprano)
-Frank Lloyd Wright (supernumerary)

Duration: ca. 60'

Production and Development Partners

The world-premiere production of Stained Glass is made possible by the generous support of: 
The Mac Morris Fund for Innovation in Opera
XR Faculty Award from the Office of the Provost