Rice Commissions New Opera in Memory of Adelaide Lummis
The Shepherd School of Music will premiere a 90-minute opera by composer Paola Prestini in the 2029-30 academic year.
Updated on Nov. 2, 2026 in Opera
Rice University's Shepherd School of Music has commissioned a new opera from composer Paola Prestini, funded by David and Susan Lummis in memory of their daughter, Adelaide Emily Lummis. The one-act work, with a libretto by Mark Campbell, is set to make its world debut at Rice's Brockman Hall for Opera.
Why it matters
The commission honors Adelaide Lummis, who died from cancer in 2025 at age 32, and gives Shepherd School students the chance to take a work from early readings through fully staged performances. For Houston, the project ties a local family's loss to a new artistic work developed at one of the city's major universities.
The opera is a 90-minute, one-act work with a libretto by Mark Campbell, who won the 2012 Pulitzer Prize in music for the libretto of "Silent Night." Financial terms of the commission beyond the Lummis family's gift were not disclosed.
The players
Rice University's Shepherd School of Music
The Houston conservatory within Rice University that commissioned the opera and will stage its premiere at Brockman Hall.
Paola Prestini
A composer and co-founder of National Sawdust in Brooklyn, selected to write the new commissioned opera.
Mark Campbell
A librettist who won the Pulitzer Prize in music in 2012 for the libretto of the opera "Silent Night" and wrote the libretto for this work.
The details
The Shepherd School of Music commissioned the work from Paola Prestini, co-founder of National Sawdust in Brooklyn, following a financial commitment from David and Susan Lummis. Workshops begin in 2028-29, and the opera is designed to let students experience creating a work from early readings to full staging.
Timeline
2025: Adelaide Lummis dies from cancer at age 32.
2012: Mark Campbell wins the Pulitzer Prize in music for the libretto of "Silent Night."
2028-29: Workshops for the new opera begin at Rice University.
2029-30 academic year: The opera makes its world debut at Brockman Hall.
Season Trajectory
The commission continues a pattern of university-based opera development in which a conservatory funds and premieres new works. Mark Campbell's Pulitzer Prize for "Silent Night" in 2012 places this project within a line of recent award-recognized American opera librettos.
The opera will premiere at Brockman Hall on the Rice University campus in Houston, so local audiences can attend the staged performances in the 2029-30 academic year. Ticket details and pricing were not included in the source material.
The takeaway
The commission shows how a family's private loss can fund a public artwork that gives students hands-on experience creating an opera from first readings to full production.
What happens next
Workshops for the opera begin in 2028-29, ahead of the world premiere at Brockman Hall in the 2029-30 academic year.
Further reading
Explore more on Opera to see how university commissions like this one fit into the wider field.
