I've never felt this way about anyone and it's not something I tell everyone

The opera troupe Man Must Sing (MMS) is a freelance group that commissions, produces and performs newly written and norm-creative performing arts in the Swedish language. The freelance singers Nina Ewald, Amanda Flodin and Karl Peter Eriksson take care of artistic direction as well as the singing performances.

With support from the 2024 Signatur Programme, MMS was able to complete their second opera production for children: I’ve never felt this way about anyone and it’s not something I tell everyone.

Norm-creative opera for middle school children

Inspired by Suzanne Osteen’s view of children’s culture, where children are seen as “capable and competent to take on board and make use of culture”, Man Must Sing created its second opera for children.  At the same time, they continued their exploratory work to develop opera as an art form by creating newly written norm-creative chamber opera in Swedish in a smart, intimate and accessible format.

In close collaboration with librettist Kristian Hallberg, composer Maria Lithell Flyg and director Gunilla J. Gyllenspetz, set/costume designer Heidi Saikkonen, lighting designer Christofer W Fogelberg and mask designer Linda Boije af Gennäs, the opera group Man Must Sing created a 40-minute chamber opera for middle school children with challenging and urgent content.  The production is written for three singers, flute, cello and percussion and premiered in Gothenburg in January 2025.

About Man Must Sing

Prior to “I’ve never felt this way..” MMS had premiered five commissioned works: Akvarium (2016), which was selected for the performing arts biennale Scenkonstbiennalen in 2017, Kom inte hit! (Don’t come here! 2018) which the Gothenburg Opera bought as a guest performance, Scener ur ett polyamoröst äktenskap (“Scenes from a Polyamorous Marriage”, 2021) which was performed in the midst of the pandemic, the children’s opera “Jag vet inte vem jag är och jag älskar det” (“I don’t know who I am and I love it”, 2021) which has been seen by over 1000 children and System (2024) which made a guest performance at Stockholms Stadsteater 19-20 April 2024.

Read more about MMS on their own website: https://www.manmustsing.se/