Two or Three (Other) Things I Know about Aida

How one opera topples several empires.

Last week, I wrote about an upcoming performance of Aida at Arizona Opera, which will set a generative-AI film version of Verdi’s plot against a concert performance. This post will make more sense if you read that first, as it looks at the genesis of the original opera, and how its themes of colonialism, imperialism, and plunder are reflected in GenAI.

For the last eight years, however, I have had one foot in the world of cultural criticism, and the other in the world of humanitarian reporting. Ethiopia, Sudan, and South Sudan are three contexts I’ve written about extensively in that time. For me, thinking about Aida means thinking about the ripple effect that opera had on the current crises in these three countries.