Tessitura

Blending historical overview with character portraits, Tessitura explores the entangled ways that voice, character, and gender are continuously reformulated in opera by those who contend with these connections daily. The film delves into the ways that contemporary transgender opera singers navigate the traditional rule and categories of their art form, interweaving personal stories with historical contexts to highlight the ongoing dialogue about gender fluidity in opera. By purposefully deemphasizing the historical figures of the castrati and women performing trouser roles, the film instead focuses on transgender opera singers who are contending with the constraints their genre imposes.