Calgary Opera has announced the first installment of its new documentary film series, meant to give audiences a behind-the-scenes view into the creation of new operas being produced through their inaugural Opera Labs project.

The first, on March 24, will be “The Seeds of Namwayut,” which follows the creation process of the upcoming, Indigenous-themed work “Namwayut.” Led by mezzo-soprano Marion Newman, who is also the project’s dramaturge, will be the second collaboration between Newman and composer Bramwell Tovey.

“Think of Opera Labs like a tech incubator, but for opera,” said current Calgary Opera General Director and CEO, Heather Kitchen, in a press release. “Its purpose is to create an adaptive, scalable and sustainable framework in our company for innovation and creativity.”

Calgary Opera partnered with local filmmakers and producers Pluto Pictures to capture the process for audiences at home. The remaining projects in the first series of Opera Labs are “Vastation,” “Arriving at the Fire,” and “The Cipher Clerk.”

“Opera Labs has given us the exact freedom we needed to work the way that allows time and space for ceremony, trust, truth and unhindered creativity,” says Newman. “‘Namwayut’ is a project I am very proud to be a part of and I cannot wait to share it with the world.”