September 19, 2026
Doors: 4:30 PM - Show: 5:00 PM
All Ages
Presented by Indiana University Opera and Ballet Theater
The Cook Off
Buskirk-Chumley Theater
114 East Kirkwood Avenue, Bloomington, IN, 47408
Date & Time
Saturday, September 19, 2026
5:00 PM
Location
Buskirk-Chumley Theater
114 East Kirkwood Avenue, Bloomington, IN, 47408
WINNING RECIPE
In this new opera, chefs face off in a televised cooking contest preparing one of America’s favorite comfort foods: macaroni and cheese. But the ensuing tensions are far from comforting as the cutthroat competition reveals deeper truths about food, culture, and history.
Okpebholo, named the 2024 Chicagoan of the Year in Classical Music by the Chicago Tribune, partnered with Pulitzer- and Grammy-winning librettist Mark Campbell to create this 60-minute comic chamber piece. Twice Grammy-nominated himself, the composer’s work is distinctly contemporary while rooted in tradition, in a voice The Washington Post calls “fresh and new and fearless.”
Music by Shawn E. Okpebholo
Libretto by Mark Campbell
Subscriptions for 2026-27 IU Jacobs School of Music are now available!
Single tickets will be available on July 31 at 11:30am EST.
CLICK HERE now to purchase tickets.
Tickets are only availble via the MAC Box Office. All questions for this event can be answered by the MAC Box Office.
MAC Box Office:
(812) 855-7433 or operatix@iu.edu
101 North Eagleson Avenue
Bloomington, IN 47405
Open 11:30am-5:30pm Monday-Friday.