The pain, sorrow, yearning, fear and undimmed hope of Jewish children who would ultimately perish during the Holocaust serve as inspiration for an upcoming New World Symphony premiere.
The piece for string orchestra titled prohibido was written by Miami-based composer Orlando Jacinto Garcia. Its debut is part of New World Symphony's "Resonance of Remembrance" series commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
The composition is Garcia's reworking of his earlier piece titled I Never Saw Another Butterfly.
It's named for a compilation of poems and drawings done by Jewish children imprisoned in the Terezin concentration camp during the war.
Garcia, who was born in Cuba, says he first heard about the Holocaust while attending middle school in Baltimore.
"I think it was a political science class, or something," Garcia says. "And I was like ‘I can’t believe humans could do this.’ So, at some point, when I got the chance to write a piece where I could make a statement about the Holocaust, I said, ‘I’ll take it.’ ”
READ MORE: A 'message of peace.' New World Symphony's season commemorates the end of World War II.
The mixed-media production featuring prohibido will include performances by Miami City Ballet dancers, video projections with images from the book and spoken text written by Garcia.
IF YOU GO
What: World premiere of Orlando Jacinto Garcia's prohibido
When: Sunday, January 26, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Where: New World Symphony
500 17th Street
Miami Beach, FL 33139
Information: Details and ticket information here.
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