I Was In An Opera

There is a fun program called Opera For The Young and I was able to take part of it! They travel around school districts and have all the materials that are needed — before hand and on the actual day of the performance. So, I Was In An Opera!

I was the Justice Of The Piece and was to perform a marriage ceremony. Unfortunately for the “happy couple” I was interrupted too many times to complete the ceremony and the hero was able to step in and take away the girl.

For several weeks, we (me and the other kids) met before school to practice our parts. Then the day arrived for a dress rehearsal and the performance. We did the opera for the entire middle school — it was a hoot!

I have been on stage since I was 2, signing and dancing, so this was just a ton of fun for me, and the adult cast was a treat to work with! I highly suggest you try to get YOUR school involved — it is a great program!

Opera for the Young® brings live, professional opera to elementary school audiences with annual Fall and Spring tours.

Opera for the Young, Inc. (OFY) is a leading provider of arts-in-education services in the Midwest, as well as a pre-eminent producer of opera for children in the United States. Each year OFY brings opera to more than 70,000 children. Winner of the 2003 Marvin Rabin Youth Arts Award, OFY focuses on arts education (educating children about the value and beauty of the arts) and also arts-in-education (using the arts as a springboard to teach other core curriculum subjects).

Opera for the Young brings live, professional opera to elementary school audiences with annual Fall and Spring tours. Students appear onstage in chorus and cameo roles, performing for their peers right alongside OFY’s professional artists. All productions are fully staged, sung in English and adapted especially for kids. OFY also holds an annual set and costume design contest wherein students submit drawings for pre-selected elements of the upcoming production’s sets and costumes.

Opera for the Young keeps school performances affordable through its own fundraising efforts. We are able to offer our programming at one-third of the actual cost through the generous support of individuals, corporations, foundations and government funding.