{"id":131020,"date":"2026-06-02T09:59:51","date_gmt":"2026-06-02T13:59:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/?post_type=featured-work&p=131020"},"modified":"2026-06-02T12:10:50","modified_gmt":"2026-06-02T16:10:50","slug":"thumbprint","status":"publish","type":"featured-work","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/featured-work\/thumbprint\/","title":{"rendered":"Thumbprint"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Thumbprint<\/em><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A co-production of BU Opera Institute and School of Theatre<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

October 24 – 26, 2024<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Studio ONE<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Kamala Sankaram,<\/a> composer<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Susan Yankowitz, librettist (from a series of interviews with Mai)<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Allison Voth<\/a>, music director<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Grant Sorenson<\/a> (CFA\u201926), stage director<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Thumbprint<\/em><\/strong><\/a> is inspired by the extraordinary transformation of Mukhtar Mai, a young woman whose world was shattered by an act of brutality that could have destroyed her. Instead, she discovers a weapon\u2014her voice\u2014and against all odds, to the astonishment of her country and herself, she seeks justice and finds it. \u201cThe worst thing in my life is also the best,\u201d she says. \u201cIt has given my life meaning.\u201d Her journey resonates beyond borders in its implicit belief that even in the darkest times, one person, one voice, through a single act of courage, can change life for thousands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about her journey to get past the harm of that attack,\u201d says William Lumpkin. \u201cA lot of people have said that they\u2019ve heard of the story and want to see something that they have some familiarity with\u2014a real-life story that is now realized in a theatrical setting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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29th Annual CFA Fringe Festival Puts Women in the Spotlight<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Thumbprint<\/em> is inspired by the true story of Mukhtar Mai, a Pakistani activist known internationally for bringing the men who raped her to court and making history in her country\u2019s legal system. The opera is a melange of Western and Hindustani influences on both the storytelling and the music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read MOre<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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The annual Boston University Fringe Festival is a collaboration between the College of Fine Arts School of Music:\u00a0Opera Institute<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0School of Theatre<\/a>. Fringe\u2019s mission is to produce new or rarely performed significant works in the opera and theatre repertoire, bringing performances and audiences together in unique theatrical settings. For over two decades, Fringe Festival at BU has celebrated and amplified new work, shown in spare and minimal productions.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kamala Sankaram, composer Susan Yankowitz, librettist (from a series of interviews with Mai) Allison Voth, music director Grant Sorenson (CFA\u201926), stage director Thumbprint is inspired by the extraordinary transformation of Mukhtar Mai, a young woman whose world was shattered by an act of brutality that could have destroyed her. Instead, she discovers a weapon\u2014her voice\u2014and against all odds, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14125,"featured_media":131033,"parent":0,"template":"","meta":{"_bu_prepress_primary_term":"","_bu_prepress_primary_term_manual":""},"bu_progs_degree-option":[],"dicipline":[125],"school":[133,130],"unit":[],"program":[160,150,132,161,145,431,152,432,140],"type-of-space":[176],"location":[186],"artist":[],"format-medium":[360],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/featured-work\/131020"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/featured-work"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/featured-work"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14125"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/featured-work\/131020\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":131066,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/featured-work\/131020\/revisions\/131066"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/131033"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=131020"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"bu_progs_degree-option","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu_progs_degree-option?post=131020"},{"taxonomy":"dicipline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/dicipline?post=131020"},{"taxonomy":"school","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/school?post=131020"},{"taxonomy":"unit","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/unit?post=131020"},{"taxonomy":"program","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/program?post=131020"},{"taxonomy":"type-of-space","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/type-of-space?post=131020"},{"taxonomy":"location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/location?post=131020"},{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=131020"},{"taxonomy":"format-medium","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cfa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/format-medium?post=131020"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}