Seattle Opera puts story of Afghan women center stage

As the Taliban once again assert control of Afghanistan and push women further out of public view, a female Afghan filmmaker is working thousands of miles away to help bring to life a wildly popular tale of two heroines living in her homeland, including under the group’s first reign. The world premiere of Seattle Opera’s “A Thousand Splendid Suns” opens Saturday evening. “It’s a story of that time with incredible parallels to this time today.” Hosseini, the book’s author who lives in California, wishes that wasn’t the case. He had hoped the story of “A Thousand Splendid Suns” 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.” He lamented that the international spotlight on Afghanistan seemed to have faded. “I hope that this opera is an expression of the collective struggles and sacrifices of Afghans over the last four decades, particularly Afghan women.” Despite initial promises, the Taliban have increasingly imposed restrictions on women and girls with an expanding list of bans that included barring them from universities and schools beyond the sixth grade.