Student Composers And Los Angeles Master Chorale To Premiere AMERICAN DREAM At Cortines Concert Hall

More than 90 high school students from the Ramón C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts will join eight singers from the GRAMMY Award-winning Los Angeles Master Chorale for the premiere of AMERICAN DREAM on Wednesday, March 25 at 7:00 p.m. The free performance will take place at the school’s 927-seat Concert Hall in downtown Los Angeles.

The 40-minute, nine-movement oratorio was written and composed by the students as part of the Master Chorale’s Oratorio Project, now in its 16th year. Developed over a 20-week residency, the program immerses students in a collaborative process to create a large-scale work combining arias, duets, and full choral movements. Students write the libretto, compose melodies, and workshop each section with teaching artists before auditioning for featured roles in the final performance.

This year’s project was developed in collaboration with Singer-Lead Teaching Artist Alice Kirwan Murray, Lyricist Teaching Artist Brett Paesel, and Composer Teaching Artist Saunder Choi. The performance will be conducted by Cortines Choir Director Drew Lewis, a 2024 California Teacher of the Year honoree.

Opening with the events of January 6, 2021, AMERICAN DREAM travels across eras of American history, from the Gilded Age and the Great Depression to post-war prosperity, the consumer-driven 1980s, and what students describe as today’s “new normal.” The work examines the distance between promise and reality, asking audiences to reconsider what the American Dream means in the present day.

“The Oratorio takes the hopeful name ‘American Dream’ off its pedestal,” said student writer Valerie Tellez. “It shows how simple some of our dreams can be and makes us question why it feels hard to achieve.”

Many participating students come from immigrant families and communities directly affected by immigration enforcement, shaping the emotional core of the piece. Co-writer Arielle Escareno said, “It’s about what the American Dream is for many versus what many feel is their reality.” Senior Margeaux Zagado added, “America is complicated.”

Lyricist Brett Paesel noted that students’ aspirations centered less on wealth and status and more on stability and opportunity. “They want the ability to go to college, have a better life than their parents did... Just an equal shot.”

The oratorio concludes with “Un Solo Corazón (One Heart),” envisioning a future defined by unity, dignity, and shared purpose.

MOVEMENTS

The nine movements are titled: Insurrection; Hope; The Dream; Born Lucky; Gilded Reality; New Deal; Give Me More; New Normal; and Un Solo Corazón (One Heart).

AMERICAN DREAM

Date: March 25
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Admission: Free (registration required)
Venue: Ramón C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts Concert Hall, 450 N. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA