The People vs. American Cheese

Written in the NYU/American Opera Project Lab 2023

Music by Durra Leung

Libretto by Clare Fuyuko Bierman

Audre Lorde, Walt Whitman, Durra, and Clare wake up surrounded by rubble, their gay cruise under attack. The culprit? The greatest danger of all— heteronormativity (in the form of American Cheese). As our unlikely heroes battle cheese slices, they must also battle one another for cultural relevance and icon status. Chaos reigns in this gay fantasia on gayer themes.

Production History

NYU/American Opera Project Lab performance 2023

Thompson St Opera performance 2025

Original Cast:

Gileann Tan as CLARE

Patrice P Eaton as AUDRE

Jordan Rutter-Covatto as DURRA

Nathaniel Sullivan as WALT

Direction by Sam Helfrich

Music Direction by Jeremy Chan

Set Design by Brian Bernhard

Costume Design by Siena Zoë Allen

Lighting Design by Andre Segar

Stage Manager: W. Wilson Jones

Production Manager: TJ Rubin

Opera Lab led by: Sam Helfrich, Associate Arts Professor of NYU Tisch School of the Arts’ Design for Stage & Film; Randall Eng, Associate Arts Professor of NYU Tisch School of the Arts’ Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program

A collaborative project of NYU Tisch School of the Arts' Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program, Department of Design for Stage and Film, and The American Opera Project.