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To celebrate 15 years of the Sense of Place series, we present...

THE WATERSHED ROCK OPERA

"THE GREATEST ROCK OPERA EVER PRODUCED ABOUT A WATERSHED*"

A multimedia performance in 5 movements celebrating the Columbia River Gorge and its people. Featuring original music composed and performed by local musicians in accompaniment with original film, audio, and theatrical performances.

"IT'S LIKE A LOVE LETTER TO A PLACE AND ITS PEOPLE, BUT WITH MORE PERCUSSION!"

And like all true love stories, there will be passion, tragedy, humor, and awe.

Imagine a pear orchardist, ready for harvest when Mother Nature strikes!...

Or hiking in the Cascade Mountains with a wildlife biologist on the lookout for a rare carnivore...

Even here, in our homes, schools, workplaces - there's something mysterious, some might even say magical, happening right under our feet (and butts)...

And there, to witness it all, is our watershed. Come hear what it has to share.

Happening in Hood River, Oregon April 11, 12 & 13 2025

(*Wondering what a watershed is? No problem...try here for a quick explainer. For The Watershed Rock Opera, we'll hear stories from watersheds on both the Oregon and Washington sides of the Columbia River. But the key here isn't the exact location, but rather, to follow the course of water, moving through our watersheds, as a way to connect diverse perspectives from the Gorge. Just when we thought watersheds couldn't get any more rad...)

We are grateful for financial support from:

Oregon Humanities

Visit Hood River

Gorge Community Foundation

The Roundhouse Foundation
Hood River Cultural Trust

...but the fundraising continues! We are seeking donors and grants to help us:

PAY OUR PEOPLE - We are working with incredible, local talent and experts. Funding can be particularly challenging in rural areas like the Gorge, but you can help! Supporting the WRO will help support these essential people AND help our creative community thrive into the future.
PAY FOR THE STUFF THAT ISN'T SEXY, BUT IS ESSENTIAL - venue rental, props and plywood, administration costs...there are some things you just have to have. But listen up! Behind these costs are local organizations, businesses, and non-profits. They may not sing or play an instrument, but what they offer us is essential - to the WRO and the Gorge community!

We hope you'll consider making a donation to support The Watershed Rock Opera...

It just might make you feel like a crystal clear creek gurgling its way down the side of a mountain on bright sunny day...but you won't know until you try!

The WRO Team

(**New team members continue to be added. Sign up for the Sense of Place newsletter to stay up-to-date.)

Sarah Fox Producer. Sarah is the creator of the Hear in the Gorge podcast and curator/host of the Sense of Place event series. As a multimedia producer, her work has appeared on Oregon Public Broadcasting in addition to film and audio stories for businesses, non-profits, Northwest tribes, governmental agencies, and individuals. Sarah's work has included wide-ranging topics like tribal fishing, Woody Guthrie, avant-garde art, vegan trailblazers, and river restoration and has been recognized by the Oregon Heritage Commission, Hood River Cultural Trust, and Oregon Cultural Trust. In 2024, Sarah was honored as a Community Storytelling Fellow by Oregon Humanities. Sarah's commitment to the rural communities of the Gorge reflect her own upbringing in Oregon.

READ about Sarah's origin story for the The Watershed Rock Opera in Channeling the Stories of the Local Watershed - an article for Oregon Humanities magazine.
WATCH team-members, Lesley Tamura, Abigail Elder, and Sarah Fox in a conversation for Consider This with Oregon Humanities Executive Director, Adam Davis. And hear Sarah explain the 5-Movements of the rock opera HERE.
LEARN more about the history of the Sense of Place program in Finding the Common Thread - an article in the winter 2024/25 edition of The Gorge Magazine.

Erik Kaneda Composer/Arranger. Erik is a composer and musician based out of Hood River, Oregon. His musical career began in Portland, surrounded by up-and-coming musicians, writing for soloists, and chamber groups. Erik’s passion for music started early after seeing a friend play the piano. Now Erik writes music that reflects the world - as a way of creating and connecting ideas. He believes that composing music that's enjoyable for performers to play translates to music that’s enjoyable to hear. In addition to music music, Erik loves programming computers and considering (professionally and personally) how science, technology, and art can come together to influence people. In his free time, he hangs out with his cats and his collaborator for life, Leila.

Molly Schwarz Singer/Performer & lyrics (Movement 4, wastewater management). Molly got her start in theater the way most people do; with her mother dragging her to an "Annie" audition at age 9. She cried and refused to sing. She did not book the job. However, the desire was there and she continued to study voice, dance and theater throughout high school and college. She attended University of the Arts (GO ARTVARKS!) where she studied musical theater. After college she moved to Los Angeles where she began her love affair with Improv at The Groundlings. She moved to NYC and performed at The Upright Citizens Brigade, Caroline's on Broadway, off-broadway and regional theaters. In 2001, she began teaching "Music For Children" while in New York and continues to this day, here in amazing Hood River! She is the mother to three wonderful boys and continues to do her annual "I Hate Cancer Concert", which has raised more than $50,000 over the years.

Marcos A. Galvez Singer/Performer. Marcos began his love affair with the musical theatre world by playing Kyle the Sexy UPS Guy in the HRVHS production of Legally Blonde the Musical. It may be assumed that Marcos had already peaked with that performance, but what was really piqued was his interest. Soon after he pursued a double major in music and theatre at Linfield College, now university, where four years of voice lessons and his experience with the acapella group Not Your Forte really helped shape him into the singer he is today. Before he could even make it to Linfield, Marcos was fortunate enough to be able to learn the inner workings of his family’s pear orchard, where “every pear is a step towards paying for college.” Nowadays Marcos stays very involved with his love of performance through the local CGOA Voci choir, and a keen eye out for any shows in the area that he would be willing to give up his many board game nights for. Like this one!

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Leila Kaneda Musical Director/percussion. Leila is a professional musician located in Hood River, Oregon. With over a decade in teaching and performance experience as a percussionist in the classical, theatrical, and pageantry worlds. Leila has studied works from all over the world, with a heavy emphasis on Japanese and Argentinian music. Today, Leila mainly works with composers to commission and/or collaborate on new works while also playing out of her home or in the community. Outside of music, Leila is the Chief Executive Officer of a new tech startup, a public speaker, and a community builder. With the goal of making the world a better place, Leila strives to center her experiences in Music, Community, and Tech to foster more welcoming and inclusive environments for people underrepresented in Music and Technology respectively.

Dave Henehan guitar. Dave has been performing in the Gorge since 2007. His guitar can be heard at the Hood River Hotel's Jazz by the Fireplace every other Saturday, in addition to other local venues - including at a window seat in Dog River Coffee, accompanied by a pile of music composition books (which is how Sarah first met him and where she first told him about her idea many months ago!) By day, Dave works as a clinical psychologist specializing in trauma treatment with adults.

Chari Harrington violin. Chari is from Buffalo, New York and has been a professional violinist for 40 years, playing symphony, opera, ballet, Broadway shows, and lots of chamber music. She moved to Hood River 10 years ago after living in the country north of Spokane, WA, where she got attacked by a mama moose, and where the roof suddenly blew off her house! Chari loves her 4 children, her boyfriend Bob, her dog Henry, playing music with her friends in the Hood River String Quartet, mountain biking, skiing, hiking, and outrigger canoeing.

Tim Mayer piano. Tim began piano lessons at the age of 6. He spent two years as a jazz major but eventually earned a degree in the natural sciences. However, after completing his science degree, he embarked on a music career. After being gainfully employed (and unemployed) as a musician in the Portland area for a number of years, he decided to return to graduate school for a Ph.D. in Environmental Science and Engineering. (can you see the left brain/right brain conflict here?) He worked for 25 years as a hydrologist for the US Fish and Wildlife Service, but is now retired. He continues to practice, play, record, compose, and gig locally. You can find a selection of his music at his website: musicbytimmayer.com or on youtube or any of the streaming services.

Michelle Edwards cello. Music has been an integral part of Michelle's life since early childhood in Wisconsin; it really was inescapable with a music teacher for a mother! She feels extremely lucky to live, work, and play outside in the incredible Columbia River Gorge since 2007. Her day job is as a physician assistant in the Hood River community but she also spends her time making music with the many talented members of the Gorge Sinfonietta (Columbia Gorge Orchestra Association), her friends in the Hood River String Quartet and Lady 8, and in any other fun musical project that comes her way. She is excited to be a part of the Watershed Rock Opera adventure, using music to connect people with this place and each other.

Mike Grodner drums. Mike has been playing and studying drums and percussion since 3rd grade, learning the craft through the California school programs, followed by studies under master drummers. He enjoys performing with big bands, small combos and theater productions. Mike moved to the Columbia Gorge in 2015 and now performs with many of the fine musicians and ensembles throughout the area.

Chris Wally Wright bass. Chris plays acoustic and electric bass with a variety of groups in the Gorge including with the Columbia Gorge Orchestra Association Sinfonietta, the CGOA Jazz Collective Big Band, and with fellow Gorge musicians. His middling music career began with his junior high school jazz band in Palatine, IL followed by further music education at Lawrence University in Appleton, WI. His favorite bands he’s been in include a dance-punk band and his jazz-folk trio that exclusively plays Grateful Dead covers. He works as a research scientist focusing on environmental policy at the Puget Sound Institute at the University of Washington.

Luke Young percussion. Born in Texas, raised in California, transplanted to Oregon, and recently returned to Texas, Luke holds a Bachelors Degree in Music Education from Portland State University where he studied classical percussion under the tutelage of Dr. Joel Bluestone, and Jeffrey Peyton. Prior to his time at Portland State, Luke was extensively involved in the marching arts activity where taught and composed for numerous ensembles throughout Southern California while also performing with national ensembles such as Pacific Crest, RCC Indoor, and 10-time world champion, The Cadets. Following his college studies, Luke took a summer job as a white water raft guide where he also learned to kayak. During this time as a raft guide and kayaker, Luke fell in love with the beauty of the Pacific Northwest as he explored the iconic watersheds found throughout Oregon, Wahshington, and Idaho. Currently, Luke resides in Dallas Texas with his wife Summer where he works as a Recruiting Business Partner by day. In his free time, he composes original music, swings kettlebells, and watches TV with his wife and two cats - Marcie and Rosie.

Chris Friesen sampler Chris is a Hood River-based musician whose career spans over 20 years as a performer, composer, and educator. A Molalla, Oregon native, Chris began playing piano and singing in choirs at six, drawing early inspiration from the public library's eclectic music collection. He has toured in 16 countries, recorded on 16 albums, and collaborated across genres, including jazz, soul, and rock. As a bassist and composer, Chris finds inspiration in Oregon’s diverse landscapes, crafting music that reflects themes of connection and mental health. He has performed at events like the Vanport Jazz Festival and Oregon Country Fair, blending artistry with community advocacy.In addition to performing, Chris runs a private teaching practice, mentoring students in performance, songwriting, and recording. His teaching philosophy emphasizes creative sustainability and cultivating a lifelong connection with music. Chris continues to contribute to the Pacific Northwest music scene through collaboration, education, and original projects.

Mackenzie Ehr choir. Growing up, Mackenzie would partake in any extracurricular possible that would put her on a stage. But in high school, her love of performing transformed when she was put in choir her first trimester of freshman year. While going on to stay in choir the next 4 years, she also went on to participate in jazz choir, and finished off her senior year as the president of their choral program. Now, while focusing on her career as an esthetician, she makes sure to still leave enough time to participate in Hood River’s local choir (VOCI), and now, this! You can always make room in one’s life for a Watershed Rock Opera!

Emily Joyce choir. Emily lives and works in the beautiful Columbia River Gorge. Ever since she moved here she's been in awe of the beauty this place holds. She feels there is a duty we have to protect the lands and waterways that abundant plants and wildlife call home. She’s happy to provide her voice and sing in the Choir of the Watershed Rock Opera. Emily holds a degree in Visual Arts and Performance and continues to act in plays at both The Bingen Theater as well as Columbia Center for the Arts. When she’s not acting you can find her gardening with her chickens or kayaking.

Blake Hobbs choir. Blake grew up in Port Angeles, WA and then attended Willamette University, where he studied Biology and Chemistry. Shortly after graduation, he moved to the Gorge to be a part of a wonderful community and explore the Gorge’s incredible natural beauty. Blake has been working at a physical therapy clinic and working on applications to PA school. His love for music began in the 4th grade when he started playing the viola. He continued in his school’s orchestra program through high school, where he had the unforgettable opportunity to take a trip with his peers to New York city and perform (mediocrely) together in Carnegie Hall. While he did not continue orchestra into college, he missed music and the togetherness it brings, so he opted to try voice lessons, which brought him to a new passion for singing. He joined the Hood River Voci choir last winter and it has been a fantastic experience. He is happy to be a part of The Watershed Rock Opera and to participate in meaningful community outreach and education as well as performance.

Cory Whittlesey choir. Cory's musical journey began in middle school, singing low bass, just like his pops did. In high school, he participated in concert choir as well as the advanced chamber choir. He won first place with Aloha High School’s New Day Singers at Oregon’s Chamber Choir competition, also placing top 20 in his junior and senior years at two Oregon concert choir state competitions. Finally, at Portland Community College’s concert choir, he met the love of his life, still singing together in the local Voci Choir, and happily married for eleven years! Cory’s new focus is on playing with local bands, either playing the bass guitar or singing Bob Marley classics!

Maxwell Love choir. Maxwell is a life-long Gorge resident with a passion for Nature, music, visual arts and live performance. When they’re not busy working at the Gorge Rebuild-It Center, they can be found at a local coffee shop, bakery, singing at karaoke, or out in the middle of the woods on the ground taking photos of little mushrooms and bugs. They are so grateful to be a part of this inspiring production that combines their passions of Earth and Art, and hope this inspiration and love is felt by the community.

Savannah Rogan choir. Savannah is a teacher at the Mosier Community School where she instructs Middle Schoolers in the Humanities, and teaches theater to students from second through eighth grade. She has a degree in Theatre from the University of Oregon, where she specialized in acting. She has previously been seen in many Gorge productions, most recently Batboy, as Mrs. Taylor, and A Doll's House Part Two, as Emmy. She is excited and grateful to be a part of this project.

Chal Oates, choir. Chal is a third generation Hood River resident who spends their days helping with the family pear orchard in Odell. They have been in numerous plays and musicals in the area over the past 30 odd years, most recently as Frank-n-Furter in The Rocky Horror Show in Bingen. Chal also sits as an associate member of the Hood River Soil and Water Conservation District. Otherwise you might catch them playing in The Dalles with Gorge Roller Derby or at the park with their amazing kiddo Ruth. Let's celebrate water!

Jade Parker, choir. Having attended performing arts schools growing up in Cincinnati, Ohio, Jade Parker enjoys both performing on-stage and providing behind-the-scenes support. She lives & works in the Gorge and is thrilled to join the Watershed Rock Opera Project!

Thomas Morning Owl Storyteller, Movement 1 - The Beginning. Thomas Morning Owl (Umatilla/Blackfeet) resides in Pilot Rock and had a very traditional upbringing. His grandmother spoke only Umatilla, Yakama, and Nez Perce—never English. He has spent his life learning traditional skills such as cornhusk weaving, drum making, healing arts, dance, and language skills. He learned the traditional ways in the traditional manner: whenever he wanted something, he was told that he had to do it or make it himself. There was advice along the way, but it was his responsibility to accomplish his goal. As a result, Morning Owl is well-versed in innumerable traditions. Morning Owl, who practices the Washat religion, teaches the Umatilla language and also speaks some Nez Perce and Walla Walla. He is also a drum maker, and makes sewn-on and laced drums. He prefers the former, which involves sewing deer hide onto the drum frame. This is a more labor-intensive process but it results in a longer-lasting drum. Morning Owl also knows many of the old traditional dances specific to the local tribes. He explains that these rarely danced “folk dances” include the bear, cougar, eel, butterfly, eagle dances. Morning Owl, who was raised in the old style, calls himself a “professor of Indian things.” He says “It’s very hard to be an Indian,” and notes “Art is everything—it is all around us.” (bio from Oregon Folklife Network - Oregon Culture Keepers).

Lesley Tamura Advisor/Movement 3 - Grow a Pear. Lesley was born and raised in Hood River. She grew up on her family’s orchard, watching different pear varieties grow from buds to blossoms to pears year after year. Lesley studied elementary education at Western Oregon University and spent the next decade teaching, first as a substitute in Hood River County School District and then as a sixth grade teacher in the Hillsboro School District. After leaving teaching, she returned home to learn the family business from her father and she is now the 4th generation of the Tamura family to grow fruit in the Hood River Valley. Lesley currently serves as vice-chair of Columbia Gorge Fruit Growers, a non-profit organization of 440 growers and 20 shippers of tree fruit in the Mid-Columbia area. Watch "Grow a Pear" from Sense of Place, featuring Lesley.

Jocelyn Akins Advisor/Movement 2 - Rare Cascades Carnivores. Jocelyn is a wildlife biologist and founder of Cascades Carnivore Project. She studies rare, alpine carnivores, working in collaboration with numerous partners to promote the conservation of carnivores and their ecological communities in the Cascade Range. She earned a Ph.D. in Conservation Genetics from the University of California Davis and has over twenty years of experience in wildlife conservation research. She is a 2021 Wilburforce Leaders in Conservation Science Fellow. In 2022, data from the Cascades Carnivore Project was used to list the Cascades Red Fox as an endangered species in Washington State. Watch "Rare Carnivores of the High Cascades" from Sense of Place, featuring Jocelyn.

Louie Hooks Advisor/Movement 4:Wastewater Management. Louie is the Wastewater Treatment Plant Manager in the City of Hood River. When Louie started in this line of work 46 years ago his family discouraged him at first. Couldn’t he find something more honorable? He replied, what could be more honorable than taking care of the environment and making sure everyone is safe? He’s got a good point. Without our wastewater systems, everything we flush, dump, and drain would go straight into the river. Diseases like cholera, typhoid, and polio would run rampant. And you might be dead. Honorable indeed! Before coming to Hood River, Louie worked for wastewater systems in Idaho and New Mexico. Louie is originally from Iceland, where he spent much of his childhood, and where sewage is called Skólp and clean water is called Hreint Vatn.

Abigail Elder Advisor/Movement 4: Wastewater Management. Abigail is the city manager for the City of Hood River, Oregon. She is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the city, covering everything from streets to public safety to land use (and figuring out how to pay for it all.) A public librarian for almost twenty years before becoming a bureaucrat, she holds masters degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Portland State. She is a past president of the Oregon Library Association, a current board member of the Oregon City/County Manager Association and serves on the Water/Wastewater Policy Committee for the League of Oregon Cities. Abigail’s favorite part of her job as city manager is that it offers countless opportunities to learn, grow, and connect with the community.

Terrie Brigham Storyteller, Movement 5: River (Homecoming) Terrie is a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. She is also a mom, a sister, a ship captain - among many things. Terrie grew up dip-net fishing with her family and continues the tradition today with her own children and family (including her son, Elliot, pictured here). In 2014 her family opened the Brigham Fish Market in Cascade Locks and Terrie now captains a fishing boat on the Columbia River in what’s known as Zone 6 – the 147-mile stretch of river between the Bonneville and McNary Dams. Commercial fishing in Zone 6 is reserved exclusively to the 4 Columbia River Treaty tribes (non-commercial sport fishers may still fish in this stretch of river in approved seasons). Look out at the river most any time of year and if the salmon or sturgeon are in season, Terrie will be out on the water, often early in the morning, hauling in gillnets or dip-netting from her family’s fishing platform. You can hear more of Terrie’s story, and some of the history of fishing in the Pacific Northwest in these episodes of the podcast Hear in the Gorge (an audio companion to the Sense of Place program):

Hear in the Gorge, Ep. 6: Tribal Fishing in the Pacific Northwest

Hear in the Gorge LIVE: with Terrie Brigham

Joe Garoutte A/V Tech Director - With a BA in Theatre and over 30 years of experience, Joe humbly crafts the magic behind the scenes, informed by years being on the stage. Joe has directed A/V and livestreaming for multiple seasons of Sense of Place. As co-owner of Big Britches Productions, along with his wife April, Joe brings live theater, livestreaming, music, and comedy to a variety of audiences. Big Britches Productions' goal is to serve the community as much as possible.

Cole Goodwin is the Outreach Coordinator for Mt. Adams Institute, where they focus on crafting campaigns and sharing stories that inspire deeper connections between people and the natural world. With a background in journalism, marketing, entrepreneurship, and advocacy, Cole specializes in creating engaging outreach campaigns and amplifying voices that celebrate the beauty, complexity, and resilience of our shared natural and cultural ecosystems. A lover of storytelling and the outdoors, Cole is passionate about telling stories that connect us to the land and to one another. Their behind-the-scenes work ensures that Sense of Place events like The Watershed Rock Opera and its messages of collaboration and creativity reaches audiences near and far.

Kyle Ramey, Photographer. Kyle first began using a camera in high school in the 1990s, when schools still had real dark rooms for developing and printing, and MTV still showed music videos. Primarily focusing on live events and outdoor lifestyle images, Kyle’s work has been published in The New York Times and Outside Magazine, among others. He’s currently in his third season as the photographer for the Mt Adams Institute’s Sense of Place lecture series, and is already excited for the next season. When he’s not discretely photographing live events, his time is filled with managing local non-profit Anson’s Bike Buddies, with being a husband, being the proud father of a teenage daughter, playing smooth guitar in a flannel-clad Dad Rock band, and planning the production schedule at Full Sail Brewing.

Carla Fox, Set & Prop Dream Team. Carla is the OG Creative Problem Solver. So when the Opera needed some large-scale fabric scheming and dreaming, Carla was the natural go-to. Her list of creative credentials spans a lifetime. Raised by parents who valued the ability to make things by hand, Carla has carried those values through her own life. First as a self-employed artist making large scale fabric installations alongside her husband; including work for the PGA Golf Tour, a Superbowl, and a Helen Readdy concert stage. And then as a metalsmith, traveling the Pacific Northwest show circuit and eventually starting Art in the High Desert; an art show in Bend, Oregon that rose to one of the top-10 shows nationally (but really stood out because of it's unwavering commitment to the artists and their expertise). All the while Carla raised two kids (including WRO Producer, Sarah Fox) - surrounding them with 2 of the greatest gifts any kid could have - art supplies and creative people.

(**New team members continue to be added. Sign up for the Sense of Place newsletter to stay up-to-date.)

How to support us:

Make an online Donation (at top of this page)

Then sit back and imagine you're a large, fluffy snowflake gently floating down to a mountaintop where you've now become a part of our watershed.

Donate by check

Please make checks payable to Mt. Adams Institute AND be sure to write Watershed Rock Opera in the memo line of the check.

Mail to:

The Watershed Rock Opera

c/o Mt. Adams Institute
2453 HWY 141
Trout Lake, WA 98650

Tell a friend

Word-of-mouth can make a HUGE difference to a program like ours. It'll be like you're irrigation water, shot out of sprinkler, whose many little drops help feed some of the most abundant pear orchards in the world (learn more in Movement 3 of the WRO). So get to it - go water your friends with the story of The Watershed Rock Opera.

Share on social media

Use #watershedrockopera and tag @senseofplacegorge

If you have questions please contact Sarah Fox at SOP@mtadamsinstitute.org.

You rock! Thank you for your support!

The Watershed Rock Opera

A Special Sense of Place Event Happening April 11, 12 & 13 2025