Lili Elbe at Santa Fe Opera

Lili’s journey — marked by love, loss and self-discovery — is the true story of a Danish painter who, with the steadfast support of her wife Gerda, became one of the first to undergo gender-affirmation surgery nearly a century ago.

Named “Best World Premiere” at the 2024 Oper! Awards, we are thrilled to present the American premiere of Tobias Picker and Aryeh Lev Stollman’s groundbreaking new opera. Former Apprentice singer, baritone Lucia Lucas, makes her Santa Fe Opera debut as Lili Elbe, and returning soprano Sylvia D’Eramo sings the role of Gerda Wegener, Lili’s supportive wife who was also a celebrated artist. This production brings the artists’ milieux of 1920s Paris and Copenhagen to life with direction by James Robinson, set design by Allen Moyer and costumes by Marco Piemontese.