NVO Blog
5 reasons Opera Shorts is Great for Newbies
Of course you love opera, but getting the uninitiated through the door to see their very first opera can be a daunting task. Let’s face it, opera can be sorta intimidating. Think back to your first night at the opera, were you afraid you wouldn’t understand the language, didn’t own a ball gown? We get it, we’ve all been there.
So here’s a list of five potential fears your friends may have about seeing their very first opera, and how to get them to join you for our Artown presentation of Opera Shorts at Steinway Gallery. Opera like any social experience is best enjoyed in the company of good friends!
Fear One: "Operas are too long, what if I’m bored out of my mind?"
Response: Opera Shorts is the perfect opera intro. It packs all the action, passion, excitement, humorous antics and heart-rending human emotion of opera into tasty bite sized morsels of musical goodness!
Fear Two: "I don’t have the right attire for a night at the opera, my ballgown is at the cleaners!"
Response: Don’t panic! Nirvana’s Kurt Cobaine sang “Come as you are,” and we feel the same way!
We just want to share the exciting experience of live opera with you.
Have you seen the Opera Shorts logo? It’s a pair of boxers with musical notes on it which was featured on the Grammys website as the best classical graphic of 2010: “But you don’t have to wear an evening gown to hear classical music, as demonstrated by Opera Shorts, which features an evening of 10-minute operas by a variety of composers.
Fear 3: I won’t understand what they’re singing about, I don’t speak italian!
Response: Almost, all of the opera’s are in english. The only exception is the Dream Oath Opera from the Video Game Final Fantasy VI which we’re collaborating on with the Reno Video Game Symphony on. Yeah, you heard right, an opera from a video game. We’re not stuffy at all, opera is for everyone! Our resident artist Scottie Roche tells us his first introduction to opera was playing this videogame as a pre-teen, and it led him to ask his parents for tickets to Aida, The Magic Flute, La Traviata and Tan Dun’s Marco Polo that year. Who would have thought playing video games could lead a kid towards a career in opera? We think that’s pretty awesome!
Fear Four: "I have kids, they’ll never sit still for an opera!"
Response: The lineup for Opera.Shorts is full of fast action, zany humor that the whole family will love regardless of attention span.
One of the operas, Christian McLeer’s Kindergarten is something your youngest family members can relate to, and as Nevada Opera audiences saw when we presented his musical G Train, kids love his music!
Fear Five: "Alright, you’ve really put me at ease, but I can’t afford tickets for a night of opera for my whole family!"
Response: Relax, no sweat, we know how hard the economy has been on families, that’s why all our performances at this year’s Artown are free! You can’t beat the price. Bring the kids, bring your neighbors, bring everyone and find out what all the singing’s about! It won’t cost you a cent!
See you and your friends at the Opera!
Opera Shorts
Sunday, July 8 at 7.30PM
Steinway Gallery
500 East Moana Lane
Reno, NV
