Asia Society Texas will present the workshop premiere of sisila ila ila: saying goodbye, a unique musical work about the environment featuring shadow puppetry, whale songs, and celebrated violist Hsin-Yun Huang.

Juxtaposing a 1966 recording of a SaiSiyat indigenous singer from Taiwan with recorded songs of humpback whales, the voice of an inquisitive viola, and imagery developed with the Taiwanese Tung-Hua Shadow Puppet Troupe, sisila ila ila: saying goodbye is a musical poem evoking a sense of longing for worlds that have been lost or may be in the process of being lost. This work represents a fresh kind of theater that transports us, visually and musically — as if in a dream — to other worlds, calling upon all to listen to one another, embrace shared experiences of life, and dissolve fears of isolation.

The performance will be followed by a talk and panel discussion with David Rothenberg, acclaimed musician and author of books on music, art, and nature. The reception will be hosted by the Center for the Environmental Studies, Rice University.