Infinitesimal

“An extraordinary new step into chamber opera” (Pure.Art Circle, Italy), Infinitesimal explores life’s deepest mystery: the passage between life and death.  

Inspired by groundbreaking research on near death experiences as well as current social psychology, Infinitesimal follows the brain’s final stages as observed in people who had been pronounced dead, but against all odds, were revived. The stages include a transformative review of one’s life as well as encounters with lost loved ones. Such moments structure the opera’s narrative, immersing audiences in a journey that is both deeply personal and profoundly universal. Through the interwoven life experiences of its two lead performers, the opera unfolds as Jeremy Weiss (baritone/theater artist) and Nicole Brancato (composer/pianist) relive defining moments in their own lives — through love, loss, laughter, to resilience. 

Infinitesimal blurs the boundaries between science, memoir, theater, and music, transmuting chamber opera into an expansive sonic landscape, pushing the expressive limits to reimagine the singer-pianist duo. At once cosmic and deeply human, Infinitesimal magnifies the vastness of the universe while celebrating the richness of our individual fleeting lives. It showcases queer and female voices through the shared experiences of its central characters and “amplifies the vital interconnection between humans” (Paradiso.Pure Living). 

Dancing at the threshold between our existence and what lies beyond it, Infinitesimal is directed by Kevin Newbury and composed by Nicole Brancato and Jeremy Weiss. The duo took their inspiration from this Richard Dawkins quote: “The chances of each of us coming into existence are infinitesimally small, and even though we shall all die someday, we should count ourselves fantastically lucky to get our decades in the sun.”

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