A visitor comes to witness an execution by a machine of capital punishment which he deems as antiquated and inhumane. But the colony’s presiding officer cannot imagine justice without this machine, his “work of a lifetime.” On the surface, Kafka wrote of capital punishment and justice, but as his tale unfolds we see a struggle between enlightenment and the conquering of the human spirit. Philip Glass’ haunting score for two opera singers and string quintet brings Kafka’s masterpiece to life.