EarRelevant Staff | 29 OCT 2026
ST. PAUL, Minnesota— The Minnesota Opera has postponed the world premiere of The Many Deaths of Laila Starr, its season-opening production, amid an unresolved labor dispute with its orchestra.
The company announced the decision on Monday, only days before the scheduled Oct. 31 opening at the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts. Performances were set to run through Nov. 8. Officials said they could not proceed without formal assurance that the production would not be interrupted by a potential work stoppage.
The 46-member Minnesota Opera Orchestra, represented by Twin Cities Musicians Union Local 30-73 of the American Federation of Musicians, voted unanimously on Oct. 6 to authorize a strike. No strike has been called. The musicians’ previous contract expired June 30.
In the days before the scheduled premiere, Minnesota Opera proposed a temporary no-strike, no-lockout agreement. Under the proposal, the orchestra would receive any negotiated wage increases retroactively once a new contract was reached, allowing the production to go forward while bargaining continued. The union declined.
“MN Opera cannot responsibly place our patrons, artists and creative teams in a position where a premiere performance must be canceled after guests are seated and artists are in costume and ready to perform,” the company said in a statement. It said all contracted fees will still be paid to artists, including orchestra musicians, and that the production will be rescheduled for a future season. Ticketholders are being offered refunds, exchanges or credit toward later performances.
Musicians described the postponement as a management decision that effectively prevented them from performing. “We are prepared to play,” cellist Rebecca Arons, chair of the negotiating committee, said in comments reported by local media. The union has characterized the cancellation as a lockout and criticized management’s economic proposals, saying musicians have gone without meaningful cost-of-living increases for years after making concessions during the pandemic.
The orchestra announced it will present a free community concert of opera excerpts on Nov. 1 at 7 p.m. at Ted Mann Concert Hall at the University of Minnesota. The program, conducted by former Minnesota Opera music director Michael Christie, will include members of the Minnesota Opera Orchestra, colleagues from the Minnesota Orchestra, and singers from the Minnesota Opera Chorus.
The Many Deaths of Laila Starr, with music by Kamala Sankaram and a libretto by Minita Gandhi, is adapted from the graphic novel by Ram V and Filipe Andrade. Minnesota Opera commissioned and developed it through its New Works Initiative. The company has said the postponement is intended to protect the three-year development process and the artists involved.
Negotiations have been ongoing for months. Minnesota Opera has detailed its proposals on its website, including offers of increases in scale rates of pay, and has filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board alleging the union engaged in bad-faith bargaining. The charge remains pending. Both sides have said they want to reach an agreement.
Composer Kamala Sankaram said in a statement that the postponement was disappointing after years of work but that she supported the company’s decision to avoid last-minute uncertainty for artists and audiences who had made travel plans.
The opera’s next scheduled production is My Name is Florence in January. No new dates for The Many Deaths of Laila Starr have been announced. ■
EXTERNAL LINKS:
- Minnesota Opera: mnopera.org
- Twin Cities Musicians Union, AFM Local 30-73: tcmu.com
- Kamala Sankaram, composer: kamalasankaram.com
- Minita Gandhi, librettist: minitagandhi.com
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