By SDCN Staff
San Diego, CA–Bodhi Tree Concerts has set the dates for the most ambitious undertaking in its 14-year history: the world premiere of a bilingual Spanish/English chamber opera, Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote, by Pulitzer Prize-winning and Grammy-nominated composer, San Diego’s own Anthony Davis, with a libretto by playwright and UCSD professor Allan Havis and Spanish text by Laura Fuentes.
Slated to premiere on January 17 and 18, 2026, at Southwestern College Performing Arts Center in Chula Vista, and on January 31, 2026, at Casa de Cultura in Tijuana, Mexico, Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote is based on the children’s book of the same name by award-winning Mexican-American author and illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh. An allegorical tale, Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote, brings to light the hardship and struggles facing families who seek to make better lives for themselves by crossing the border. A young rabbit named Pancho, whose Papá travels north to find work and to earn money for his family, finds himself on a long journey. When Papá does not return as expected, young Pancho sets out on an adventure to find him. Pancho experiences many trials and dangers on his journey, but the story ends happily with a celebration when both finally return home.
Drawing on its established relationships with schools, libraries, arts educators, its colleagues at Operá de Tijuana, and an internationally respected artistic team, Bodhi Tree Concerts will highlight through words and music the important, misunderstood, and politicized subjects of immigration and migrant life. Maria Teré Rique, general director of Ópera de Tijuana, will act as co-presenter and liaison for the Tijuana performances, and internationally renowned Octavio Cardenas will lead the production as Stage Director.
“There is no better place to share this story than right here at the border we call home,” says Bodhi Tree Concerts co-founder and director Diana DuMelle. “San Diego and Tijuana are uniquely connected, and the themes of migration, family, and resilience are lived realities in our community.
The Pancho Rabbit project includes a robust arts and education program with kindergarten through college-age students attending schools proximate to the southern border. The program includes teaching artists in classrooms, mentor/mentee relationships, onstage performing opportunities, masterclasses, free performances, and more.
The commission of Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote is supported in part by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, MAP Fund, and the San Diego Foundation’s Peace Fund.
