Emmett Till Premiere
March 23-24, 2022

Emmett Till, a 14 year-old African-American Chicago boy, was brutally lynched in Mississippi Summer 1955. The story of Emmett Till shocked the nation. From his mother Mamie Till’s phenomenal courage to the stark failure of justice, Mary Watkins and Clare Coss have created a profoundly stirring new opera that blazes with power, heals with outrage, melodies of love and compassion, and the complexities of human experience.
New York concert premiere: March 23-24, 2022
Gerald W Lynch Theater, John Jay College, NYC
Mark Your Calendars!
Watch our five minute introduction here:
Learn More About Emmett Till, The Opera →
Tania León Awarded Pulitzer
Tania León, Emmett Till opera conductor and eminent composer, was awarded the 2021 Pulitzer Prize in Music for “Stride,” a work commissioned and performed by the New York Philharmonic to honor the centenary of women’s suffrage. “Stride” was inspired by suffragist Susan B. Anthony and her beloved grandmother. The piece called “solemn and celebratory” ends with two percussionists ringing 19 tubular bells.
Emmett, Tief en meinem Herzen Filming
Label Noir, Afro-German artist collective in Berlin, recently completed filming my play, Emmett, Tief en meinem Herzen, German translation by Christian Buchner. Emmett Till is a defining story of race relations in the United States. Artistic directors Lara-Sophie Milagro and Dela Dabulamamzi dramatize how the Emmett Till tragedy reverberates in contemporary Germany.
“One of the most important projects of my career as actor, director, producer. So proud and happy to work with our amazing team. How privileged we are to bring Emmett Till’s story to the screen.” – Lara-Sophie Milagro, co-artistic director Label Noir
You can find Label Noir on Instagram and their website.