Schedule

Friday, February 7, 2025
6:30 p.m. Pre-show Activities
7:30 p.m. Performance

Saturday, February 8, 2025
1 p.m. Pre-show Activities
2 p.m. Performance

Sunday, February 9, 2025
1 p.m. Pre-show Activities
2 p.m. Performance

Advance Ticket Sales

Now through January 10, 2025: $30 ($25 for AST Members)
After January 10, 2025: $40 ($30 for AST Members)

The Big Swim celebrates Lunar New Year with a witty, heartwarming one-act opera sure to delight families and opera lovers alike! In this retelling of the Jade Emperor and the Great Race — a fable that sets the order of the 12 animals in the zodiac calendar — the animals learn to put aside fierce competition to instead care for and support one another, side by side.

Commissioned by Houston Grand Opera in partnership with Asia Society Texas, The Big Swim fuses diverse influences into a single, compelling story, intentionally crossing boundaries between traditional and modern, Eastern and Western, and classical and non-classical. The work will be presented at Asia Society Texas as part of its Lunar New Year festivities and will be preceded by activities, including shadow puppets, calligraphy demonstrations, and an original children's dance piece by Nao Kusuzaki celebrating the Year of the Snake.

Cast

Angela Yam (Rabbit/Horse)
Qirong Liang (Snake/Sheep)
Alice Chung (Ox/Pig)
Mark He (Monkey/Rat)
Zizhao Wang (Tiger/Rooster)
Zaikuan Song (Dragon/Dog)

Creative Team

Composer
Meilina Tsui

Librettist
Melisa Tien

Conductor
Eiki Isomura

Production by
Mo Zhou

Revival Director
Kihwa Nam

Scenic and Puppet Designer
Afsaneh Aayani

Costume Designer
Valérie Thérese Bart

Lighting Designer
Michael James Clark

Zodiac Circle Founding Donors

Year of the Rat
Anonymous

Year of the Tiger
Chinhui and Eddie Allen
Nancy C. Allen
The Takashima Family
Janae and Ken Tsai

Year of the Rabbit
Anne and Albert Chao
Drs. Julie and Stephen Chen
Kathy and Marty Goossen
Sue and Randy Sim
Michelle and Rishi Varma

The Big Swim is a co‐production of Houston Grand Opera and Asia Society Texas.

Performing Arts and Culture programs at Asia Society Texas are presented by Syamal and Susmita Poddar. Major support comes from Nancy C. Allen, Chinhui Juhn and Eddie Allen, The Brown Foundation, Inc., the City of Houston through Houston Arts Alliance, Houston Endowment Inc. Generous funding also provided by The Anchorage Foundation of Texas, The Cullen Trust for the Performing Arts, and Mitsubishi Corporation (Americas), National Endowment for the Arts, Texas Commission on the Arts, and the Wortham Foundation. Additional support is provided by The Clayton Fund, and the Friends of Asia Society, a dedicated group of individuals and organizations committed to bringing exceptional programming to Asia Society Texas.

Performing Arts and Culture Presenting Sponsors

Syamal and Susmita Poddar

Performing Arts and Culture Program Sponsors

Producing Partner

About Asia Society Texas

Asia Society Texas believes in the strength and beauty of diverse perspectives and people. As an educational institution, we advance cultural exchange by celebrating the vibrant diversity of Asia, inspiring empathy, and fostering a better understanding of our interconnected world. Spanning the fields of arts, business, culture, education, and policy, our programming is rooted in the educational and cultural development of our community — trusting in the power of art, dialogue, and ideas to combat bias and build a more inclusive society.