Alkemie will premiere “Eleanor,” a new queer chamber opera by ensemble core-member Niccolo Seligmann, at the New Stage Performance Space on the Upper West Side on April 24 and 25.

The semi-staged work centers on Eleanor Rykener, a gender-nonconforming person arrested in London in 1394 while presenting as a woman. The title role will be created by non-binary soprano Elisse Albian. Joining Albian is Tracy Cowart (voice, harps), Ben Matus (voice, hümmelchen, recorders), David McCormick (vielle), Morgan Morse (voice), Seamus Ricci (voice), Sian Ricketts (voice, recorders, douçaines), Seligmann (vielle, psaltery), Ellie Sutherland (voice, percussion), and Spiff Wiegand (voice, percussion).

Alyssa Weathersby serves as director and handles light and projection design.

“Queer and trans people have always been here, and Eleanor Rykener’s story proves this,” Seligmann said per an official press release. “Celebrating the few queer and trans ancestors who’ve made it into the historical record is an important way of connecting with our communal past and gives us hope for a queer and trans future.”

Both performances will be followed by a Q&A with the composer and performers, as well as a post-concert reception. “Eleanor” is funded in part by The Amphion Foundation, Inc.

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