Two years before his death, artist, filmmaker, and playwright Christoph Schlingensief managed to embark Kéré on his dream of building an opera house in the heart of Africa. While traveling through Burkina Faso in search of the adequate site, the country suffered the worst floods in recent years and many houses were destroyed. As a reaction to the events they updated the project with a house prototype to help the population in the process of rebuilding their homes, and this is how the Opera Village project started.

Located in Laongo in an area of 12 hectares, the project foresees the construction of an opera, a school for 500 children with a music and drama program, a house prototype, and a health center. The design for the opera, the most emblematic element of the project, recycles a stage designed and built previously for a play in Germany. The base structure and a rotating stage are maintained and only the seats and walls inside are covered with textiles from the African country. A 15-meter tall roof completes and protects the stage and tiered seats from the weather. Housing is arranged around the opera house, and the units are designed from modules that make self-building possible.