(Photo: Wojciech Wandzel)

On February 11, 2022, tenor Karim Sulayman and Alarm Will Sound are set to preview “What Belongs to You,” a new opera-in-progress by David T. Little, at Washington University in Saint Louis.

The work is based on Garth Greenwell’s acclaimed novel that is divided into three parts as it explores desire, identity, and formative trauma.

“Its vulnerable, confessional narrative haunted me,” Little stated in a program note. “For reasons I didn’t understand at the time, it occupied the same space in my memory as Schubert’s song cycles. I felt that it needed to sing.”

“Garth’s work is particularly well-suited to opera,” said Christopher Stark, associate professor of composition in the Department of Music in Arts & Sciences. “For anyone interested in music, literature, gender, sexuality or the LGBT+ experience, I think this is a really special event.”

The preview, which kicks off at 7:30 p.m., is set to last 90 minutes.