Celebration of the Arts February 28
Between Rigoletto, the Maestro Series and Holiday Sparkle, our last 10 performances by the St Pete Opera have been complete sellouts! Coming Friday, Feb. 28, The St Pete Opera will keep the momentum going with Harmony: Tolerance and Acceptance, a concert of exceptional chamber music, plus an ambitious, all-original presentation by the Kuumba West African Dancers and Drummers.
The 8 p.m. presentation, at Opera Central, is part of the second annual St. Petersburg Celebration of the Arts and its 2020 theme, Harmony and Acceptance by The St Pete Opera.
Maestro Sforzini’s hand-picked menu of musical treats will include Berger’s Quartet in C-Major for flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon; “Voi che sapete” from Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro for mezzo soprano (Emily Heumann, from the cast of Rigoletto) plus flute, oboe, clarinet, piano and bassoon; Deborah Anderson’s Five Songs for Kathleen (texts by Emily Dickinson, Sara Teasdale and Sheila Nickerson) for oboe, piano and mezzo; and Trio Pathetique by Mikhail Glinka, for piano, clarinet and bassoon.
VIP table seating is available for the St Pete Opera’s performance of Harmony: Tolerance and Acceptance, along with premier table seating and general row seating. You won’t want to miss this incredible one-time event. All tickets are www.stpeteopera.org. And don’t forget St. Pete Opera’s genre-jumping Creative Collaborations events, March 13 and 14 at Opera Central. The program includes Musto’s “River Songs” for baritone, cello and piano; a staged presentation of Barber’s Hand of Bridge; a scintillating selection of operatic arias with chamber orchestra; an innovative trio of bassoon, piano and trumpet; and a full performance of Martinu’s La Revue de Cuisine.
Among the many performers: Tenor Jesse Donner (The Merry Widow), baritone Jake Skipworth (Rigoletto), mezzo soprano Taylor-Alexis Dupont (Pinocchio) and soprano Aleksandra Ritums (Holiday Sparkle). You can purchase tickets for Creative Collaborations here; as always, if you have any questions about about either show, or would prefer to buy tickets over the phone, call our box office at (727) 823-2040. For more details on this specific show look here.
More on the St Pete Opera’s Mission:
The mission of the St. Petersburg Opera Company is to enrich the cultural lives of the residents of and visitors to the Tampa Bay area by presenting fully staged professional opera productions of the highest quality, and to make opera accessible to present and future audiences through community outreach, educational initiatives, and collaboration with other arts organizations.
More on the St Pete Opera’s Vision:
The artistic experience has always been paramount in Maestro Mark Sforzini’s vision. Since founding the company in 2007, the quality of musicianship has continued to grow and thrive, enhancing the cultural life of Tampa Bay and providing myriad opportunities for professional singers, orchestral players, dancers, directors, choreographers, and designers both locally and abroad.
The St. Petersburg Opera Co. has been recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts for the quality of its Emerging Artist program and its productions and personnel have won numerous industry awards, boasting the honor of being voted “Best Opera Company of the Bay” for three years running. Maestro Sforzini was recently chosen by Musical America as one of thirty international industry professionals as a “Profile in Courage”. These top industry leaders have “taken a risk, spoken out where others were silent – all to the measurable benefit of their arts organizations and the field”.
Maestro Sforzini is devoted to the mission to make opera accessible and enjoyable for all, which can be noted in the measurable impact of lifelong learning and youth education programs. Collaboration with key artistic organizations and free concerts throughout the community allow people of all ages and from all walks of life to experience and learn that they love opera.
The St. Petersburg Opera Co. operates in a fiscally responsible fashion, finishing each of 12 consecutive seasons in the black. In 2012 SPO moved into its current downtown home – Opera Central – rapidly transforming it into one of St. Pete’s most vibrant cultural hubs. Opera Central offers an important home for the artistic community, featuring collaborative event and rehearsal space and the Mirella Cimato Art Gallery.
St Pete Opera Locations:
Opera Central
2145 First Avenue South
St. Petersburg, Florida 33712
The Palladium Theater
253 5th Avenue North
St. Petersburg, FL 33701