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Seattle Opera puts popular story of Afghan women centerstage

Karin Mushegain, right, who portrays Mariam, tends to Maureen McKay, who portrays Laila, during in a dress rehearsal for the opera "A Thousand Splendid Suns," in Seattle, on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. Kabul-born author Khaled Hosseini, the book’s author who lives in California, had hoped the story would become a relic of the past, maybe a "cautionary tale.” But instead, he said, “what’s going on with women today is a cruel deja vu.” (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

Karin Mushegain, left, who portrays Mariam, and Maureen McKay, who portrays Laila, perform in a dress rehearsal for the opera "A Thousand Splendid Suns," in Seattle, on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

Director Roya Sadat, left, confers with associate stage director Anderson Nunnelley before a dress rehearsal for the opera "A Thousand Splendid Suns," in Seattle, on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. Born in the city of Herat, Afghanistan, she happened to be in the U.S. when she learned that her birthplace had fallen to the Taliban in 2021. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

Karin Mushegain, in purple, who portrays Mariam, performs in a dress rehearsal for the opera "A Thousand Splendid Suns," in Seattle, on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

A Kabul market set in the 1970s is portrayed during a dress rehearsal for the opera "A Thousand Splendid Suns," in Seattle, on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

Roya Sadat, the stage director of the opera "A Thousand Splendid Suns," stands for a portrait in Seattle, on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. In her director’s statement, she writes, “My task was no longer to simply portray the universal pain, struggle, and perseverance of women through the story of two Afghan women. It became a duty to convey an unparalleled injustice to which my countrywomen are condemned.” (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

Ashraf Sewailam, left, who portrays Hakim, and Maureen McKay, who portrays Laila, perform in a dress rehearsal for the opera "A Thousand Splendid Suns," in Seattle, on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

Karin Mushegain, right, who portrays Mariam, emerges from a burqa given to her by John Moore, who portrays Rasheed, during a dress rehearsal for the opera "A Thousand Splendid Suns," in Seattle, on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. Kabul-born author Khaled Hosseini, the book’s author who lives in California, had hoped the story would become a relic of the past, maybe a "cautionary tale.” But instead, he said, “what’s going on with women today is a cruel deja vu.” (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

A wedding is portrayed in a scene during a dress rehearsal for the opera "A Thousand Splendid Suns," in Seattle, on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. The book it is based on provides a look into the worlds of two women over decades of Afghan history, some with stark parallels to today. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

Maureen McKay, left, who portrays Laila, John Moore, who portrays Rasheed, and Karin Mushegain, who portrays Mariam, perform in a dress rehearsal for the opera "A Thousand Splendid Suns," in Seattle, on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. Making its world debut Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023, it is based on a popular novel by Kabul-born author Khaled Hosseini that explores the inner worlds of Mariam and Laila over decades of Afghan history, some with stark parallels to the present. (AP Photo/Stephen Brashear)

Seattle Opera puts popular story of Afghan women centerstage