About this episode

Roan Shankaruk discusses her journey into opera, adaptations of literature, and her artistic work.

Roan Shankaruk is a composer, performer and artist based in Vancouver, BC. Most recently she has composed an adaptation of the 1922 novella The Fox as an opera. We talk about what about opera speaks to her and how she has evolved into it through musical theatre. She also talks about horror operas and if creating horror has made it less scary for her. We get into The Fox, why she chose the novella and what makes a short story good for adaptations. Roan also talks about her experience with exposure of contemporary operas in education and professional settings as well as obscure operas that she loves. Lastly, we get into Roan's illustrative work, her graphic novels, how she uses albums to create plots and if drawing and composing interact. Watch The Fox April 17th to 19th at The Annex in Vancouver. Intro: Hazy by OddFish

People in this episode

Host: Serra Uncu

Guest: Roan Shankaruk

Topics covered

• opera
• composition
• adaptation
• horror
• graphic novels
• musical theatre

Keywords

• opera
• The Fox
• Roan Shankaruk
• horror operas
• graphic novels
• musical theatre
• adaptation

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: The Annex

Books & works: The Fox

Places: Vancouver, BC

More episodes of Talking in the Rain

• Do You Speak the Language?｜Ralph Escamillan · June 17, 2026 · 30 min
• Question the 'Why?'｜Keilani Elizabeth Rose · April 21, 2026 · 33 min
• Who I'd Be｜Tanner Zerr · April 10, 2026 · 49 min
• Are We Pretentious?｜Isak Enquist · March 14, 2026 · 47 min
• Fingerprints in Each Shot｜Chris Lavis · February 28, 2026 · 29 min
• Performing is My Game｜Terrell Edwards · October 20, 2025 · 37 min

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Talking in the Rain podcast page.