Opera Las Vegas

BY KENDALL HARDIN

Opera Las Vegas is growing up – celebrating its 20th season ahead as a bona fide “regional opera company” under the leadership of General Director Jim Sohre.

In just a few years, the company has attained status as the Silver State’s only professional member of OperaAmerica and has grown from presenting one mainstage opera to producing a year-round schedule under three major program umbrellas.

In addition to the company’s full-scale Mainstage Opera, The company’s Opera With Class program will present the family-friendly “Bremen Town Musicians” with free admission in its 4th Annual Library Tour in May, along with the popular “Who’s Afraid of Opera” pop-up informances (perform + inform) reaching over 3,000 students annually in the Clark County School District.

OLV’s Opera on Wheels program takes opera out of the concert hall to free and low-cost venues throughout the community to engage operaphiles and new audiences alike. The company presents the delightful holiday favorite, Hansel and Gretel, in early December, followed by Opera Legends in Black, to celebrate African-American singers, composers and conductors during Black History Month.

This year, OLV is presenting not one, but two innovative West Coast premieres as part of its American Living Composers Series. Sasha Matson’s Cooperstown - A Jazz Opera in Nine Innings kicked off the season with great fanfare. The long-awaited one-act opera by composer-librettist Derrick Wang, Scalia/Ginsburg, will be performed in March in the inventive legal setting of UNLV’s Law School Moot Court. So, see you in court!

To add to this unique season, “the most talked about soprano of her generation,” American Superstar Angela Meade will perform a one-night concert in the Doc Rando Recital Hall on April 25.

This year is known as the “Magical 20th Anniversary” since the company will be mounting Mozart’s masterpiece jewel, The Magic Flute, at its fully-staged mainstage production in June. Everything promises to be sublimely entertaining – from costumes and sets to staging and special effects.

The magical theme of the company’s 2020 gala – a star-studded “evening of revelry and out-of-this-world merry-making” – happens on February 22 in the sumptuous Versailles Ballroom at the Paris Hotel-Casino. This spectacular Magical Night of Delights promises an unforgettable experience to cherish for years to come.

It’s all part of Opera Las Vegas’ Magical 20th Anniversary Celebration. So, wave your magic wand and join the fun. It’s going to be a blast!