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Tiffiny Clifton Gotta Be Me, Founder & Executive Director “What??? Opera? What the heck is Opera? Won’t that be too hard? We can’t do that? Do we have to learn Italian?” Yes, this is what we heard back from the Gotta Be Me Heartlight choir crew when we excitedly told them we were lucky enough to be working with the Opera Omaha Holland Community Opera Fellows. And then we laughed and joked and talked all about how Opera is for everyone – we just didn’t know it yet – we couldn’t see it yet or feel it……….not just yet. We talked and learned about how Opera is so much more than sing...

Jun Kaneko’s renowned production of Madama Butterfly returns to the Orpheum Theater for two performances only, November 1 and 3! Tickets start at $19: operaomaha.org/butterfly Thank you to all who attended our final Opera in Conversation for Madama Butterfly on October 29. We discussed how directors and designers can work to address the problematic elements in many of our favorite operas. Thank you also to Leslie Swackhamer, Madama Butterfly director, Yuki Izumihara, set designer for Opera Omaha’s upcoming production of The Capulets and the Montagues, and Katherine MacHolmes of Inclusive Communities for a thoughtful discussion of these topics. Here are some important takeaways from the conversation: While the evening covered a nu...

Jun Kaneko’s renowned production of Madama Butterfly returns to the Orpheum Theater for two performances only, November 1 and 3! Tickets start at $19: operaomaha.org/butterfly Thank you to everyone who attended our second Opera in Conversation for Madama Butterfly on October 22. Thank you also to Ikuho Amano Ph.D., Associate Professor of Japanese and Japanese Program Coordinator at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln, who led our conversation. In case you were not able to attend, here are some important takeaways from the conversation: Professor Amano began the conversation by laying out three frames through which one can seek to understand the cultural landscape in which Madama Butterfly was created. The firs...

Jun Kaneko’s renowned production of Madama Butterfly returns to the Orpheum Theater for two performances only, November 1 and 3! Tickets start at $19: operaomaha.org/butterfly Thank you to all who attended our first Opera in Conversation for Madama Butterfly on October 15, and thank you to Stephan Grot, Executive Director at KANEKO, and Kurt Howard, Producing Director at Opera Omaha, for guiding the conversation. In case you were not able to attend, here are some important takeaways and discussion points: Jun Kaneko’s production of Madama Butterfly, which has toured nationally and internationally, returns to Opera Omaha for its third staging in the city. It debuted at Opera Omaha in early 2006, but ...

OPERA OMAHA CHORUS AUDITIONS (OMAHA, NE) – Opera Omaha will hold chorus auditions on May 28 and May 30, 2019. The Opera Omaha Chorus is comprised of paid, professional singers from Omaha, Lincoln, and the surrounding communities. Auditions are for placement on Opera Omaha’s chorus roster, from which our Head of Music will select the chorus members for each individual show. Singers placed on Opera Omaha’s chorus roster need not audition yearly for placement in shows. Audition Dates and Times: Tuesday, May 28 – 6:00pm to 8:00pm Thursday, May 30 – 6:00pm to 8:00pm Requirements: Men and women auditioning for the Opera Omaha chorus roster must be at least 18 years of age and must be able to read mu...

Here are the upcoming community events Tuesday, April 9th through Sunday, April 14th! PLAYGROUND and RUN continue, Joslyn Art Museum An interactive sound sculpture installation, curated by Ellen Reid. STAGED READING OF DOCTOR FAUSTUS: Monday, April 9th at 6:30pm, Creighton University Lied Education Center for the Arts Creighton University's Department of Fine and Performing Arts, in partnership with Opera Omaha, will present a staged reading of Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus. This one-hour semi-staged reading will include elements of movement, costumes and theatrical lighting. ONEMORE HEALING ARTS CONCERT: Tuesday, April 10th at 12pm, Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center ONE Festival artists perform a free concert for UNMC patients, families, staff, st...

Here are the upcoming community events through Sunday, April 7th! PLAYGROUND and RUN continue, Joslyn Art Museum An interactive sound sculpture installation, curated by Ellen Reid. REID + CONCERT: Thursday, April 4th at 7pm, Joslyn Art Museum A chamber concert featuring the works of Ellen Reid and her contemporaries with performances by the Holland Community Opera Fellows, Creighton University Chamber Choir and members of the International Contemporary Ensemble. MIDDAY MUSIC: FAUST: Friday, April 5th at 12:15pm, Opera Omaha Rehearsal Studio Midday Music is a lunchtime preview of the opera and features a short performance it provides a quick taste of the story and music, along with some personal behind-the-scenes insight into ...

The definition of opera might be fluid, however, the richness of artistry is undeniable. What makes opera so special is a feeling of grandeur, the expression and evocation of emotion, and a reverence for music. To limit that experience to a prescribed formula of “soprano + large stage + orchestra” also limits experimentation. Opera Omaha hopes to combat staleness by thoroughly exploring processes of interdisciplinary collaboration through its ONE Festival. The company is attempting to deconstruct opera in order to provide a space for truly diverse performances while still cultivating the craft. Opera should not be expected or derivative; the deconstruction of its components provides the impetus to question everything and seek answ...

You can see a dance-focused FREE preview at Midday Music on Friday, March 29th: https://www.operaomaha.org/community/upcoming-events/midday-music-les-enfants-terribles Tickets are still available for the ONE Festival! https://www.onefestivalomaha.org/performances-events Our third and final installment of the Opera in Conversation for the ONE Festival ended with guests James Darrah, the Director of Les Enfants Terribles and Artistic Director of the 2019 ONE Festival, and Gustavo Ramirez Sansano, the Choreographer of Les Enfants Terribles. The pair has worked together several times before, including on Semele, which Opera Omaha staged in 2016. The collaboration has been successful and prolific. Gustavo grew up in a small town of roughly two hundred ...

Tickets are still available for the ONE Festival! https://www.onefestivalomaha.org/performances-events Our second Opera in Conversation of the 2019 ONE Festival featured the costume designer of Les Enfants Terribles, Camille Assaf, and of Faust, Kaye Voyce. Producing Director Kurt Howard moderated the conversation. Both Camille and Kaye are artists in residence during the ONE Festival, so the numerous costumes will be made in Omaha. In a way, the costumes take on a sort of site specificity that is exciting to explore. Camille Assaf is based in Paris and worked in New York before that. She met James Darrah, the Artistic Director of the Festival, through Opera America, where they ...