Black Hole Aria: A Lyrical Micro Opera Creation

When a massive star dies, a black hole is born. On August 17, at Aveny-T, black holes found a new language: Black Hole Aria — a lyrical micro opera in creation — brought together librettist Cecil Castellucci, mezzo-soprano and Chants Libres artistic director Marie-Annick Béliveau, violinist-composer Katrine Grarup Elbo, and Center of Gravity assistant professor Rodrigo Panosso Macedo for a three-day brainstorm and rehearsal workshop, culminating in a work-in-progress performance of "Requiem for a Dying Star" at the professional seminar of Copenhagen Opera Week.

The project traces back further, to an earlier collaboration between Castellucci and Panosso Macedo: a black hole comic book created with students from the graphic storytelling program at TAW/VIA University Viborg, bridging comic art and black hole physics. That partnership planted the seed for translating spacetime geometry into a new artistic language — this time, opera.

Over three intensive days, the team moved between rehearsal room and research desk, shaping text, voice, and violin around the collapse of a star as it merges with another black hole — part requiem, part physics, sung rather than lectured. With this initial vision, the team joined Copenhagen Opera Week's Industry Day as panelists on "How do we bring the art form into dialogue with other disciplines?," discussing the mutual benefit of art-science collaborative projects.

The piece was presented as a satellite event of Black Hole Week 2026. You can watch the work-in-progress performance here.

The artists

Marie-Annick Béliveau is a Canadian mezzo-soprano, performer-researcher, and arts leader recognized for her work in contemporary opera and interdisciplinary vocal performance. She has served as Artistic Director of Chants Libres since 2022, and holds a PhD in Arts Studies and Practices from UQAM, where she researches performative vocality in contemporary lyric art.

Katrine Grarup Elbo is a Danish violinist, composer, and producer based between Berlin and Copenhagen, whose work moves across improvisation, composition, performance, and installation. Classically trained at the Royal Danish Academy of Music, she gave her solo debut at Castello del Valentino in Turin in 2018.

Cecil Castellucci is an award-winning, New York Times–bestselling author of books and graphic novels for young adults. She has written three opera librettos incorporating comics, and is guest faculty at the graphic storytelling program at TAW/VIA University in Viborg.

Rodrigo Panosso Macedo is Assistant Professor at the Niels Bohr Institute's Center of Gravity. Like graphic art, his research on black holes is shaped by geometry — and like music, his work modelling gravitational-wave signals paves the way to violin chirps.

Black Hole Aria was made possible with the support of the Québec Government Office in London.

Aug. 21, 2026, 8:40 a.m.