Lillian Alling Community Events

Vancouver Opera presents a series of community events around the World Premiere of Lillian Alling.

Saturday, October 9, 10:00am - 12:00pm
Lillian’s World – A Historical Stanley Park Walking Tour

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Stand where Lillian Alling might have stood when she fell in love with telegraph linesman Scotty Macdonald. Enter Lillian’s world through this historical walking tour of Stanley Park led by historical interpreter Jolene Cumming.

Free admission – limited space. Reservations required. Click here to Register.

Wednesday, October 6
Opera Speaks @ VPL: Alone in a New Land: The Immigrant Experience in Canada
Alice Mackay Room, Vancouver Public Library Central Branch
7:00pm – 9:00pm
Free admission
Moderated by CBC Radio One's Mark Forsythe

The title character in Lillian Alling arrives in North America through Ellis Island, in New York, in 1927. Central to her story - a single-minded quest that takes her across the continent by foot and boxcar - is her experience as an immigrant. Alien, ostracized, exposed to danger and taking immense risk, her immigrant experience is a deeply moving undercurrent throughout the opera.

Canada's character has been built with the emotional and spiritual fibre of immigrants such as Lillian. Join a panel of experts and historians, as they portray the stories of individuals and families, from many lands, who have arrived on our shores.

Panelists include esteemed historian Jean Barman, and eminent historian John Belshaw, Dean of Social Sciences and Management at Langara College.