A Dog Song

Swift, sure lines: Nicolas Lell Benavides ’10 debuts an opera about puppy love.

Where to find love but at the pound? That’s what happens in Pepito, a 20-minute opera with music by Nicolas Lell Benavides ’10. The libretto by Marella Martin Koch performed to sold-out crowds after the Washington National Opera commissioned it as one of three sitcom-length operas, part of the American Opera Initiative. Of the three, at least for the Washington Post, Pepito held “pride of place.” “It wasn’t just because dogs and children tend to steal the show. It was because Nicolas Lell Benavides, the composer, and Marella Martin Koch, the librettist, found a way to sketch complete characters in swift sure lines,” Post reviewer Anne Midgette opined. The opera tells the story of a couple missing connection. Arriving just 20 minutes before the shelter closes, one half of the couple find herself seeking “the right dog.” As woman and dog connect, the couple seems to find one another as well.

post-image What can love do? / Image Courtesy of Nicolas Lell Benavides
A Bilingual Storyteller

Producer Griselda Ramirez ’08 shares her experience producing Rihanna’s NFL halftime show interview and how studying Spanish at SCU impacted her career.

How to Dress to Save the World

Innovation analyst Jyotsna Gopinath ’19 discusses small steps to addressing a big fashion problem.

Keeping Current

Alexis Loera ’21, M.S. ’21 signed a new three-year contract with the Kansas City Current getting her one step closer to the U.S. Women’s National Team.

What Goes Round

Dennis Awtrey ’70 recalls his career as a pro basketball player.