IN-SCHOOL OPERA FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

Through engaging and lively weekly rehearsals and workshops, LA Opera artists teach your students their roles as chorus members in The Prospector, a charming opera by Lee Holdridge and Richard Sparks based on Puccini's The Girl of the Golden West. Teachers will find opportunities to integrate this opera into curriculum studies of California history, geography and more. Students will also learn singing, movement and visual arts as they perform alongside LA Opera artists. LA Opera provides support materials for students and teachers to further enhance this program.

• Dates: Students will meet with LA Opera teaching artists five times between September 27 - October 29, 2010. All workshops are scheduled for one class period, one day each week between 9:00am and 3:00pm. Performance day to be scheduled between November 1 and November 19, 2010. Teacher attendance is required at a preparatory in-service seminar on Thursday, September 16, 2010 at 4:00pm.
  
  This program is ideal for single track (traditional) schools. This program may not work for all multi-track schools; contact us for more information.
  
  
• Requirements: Enrollment is open to 14 schools within a 30-mile radius of the Music Center (maximum of 70 4th and 5th grade students per school). The five-week residency culminates in two performances of The Prospector at your school for both students and parents.
  
  
• Fee: The school participation fee for the Elementary In-School Opera is $999.
  
  
• Deadline: Applications for this program are accepted throughout the year and participation is dependent on availability. We will notify you if we can accommodate your school.
  
  
• Application: Click here to download PDF.

ASSEMBLY PROGRAMS

LA Opera is proud to offer fun and interactive recitals geared toward students and families. Each assembly is available for campuses as well as festivals and special events. Speakers from the LA Opera Speakers Bureau are available for group presentations to further enrich the experience.

Sing Out Loud!
No experience is necessary to get the most out of Sing Out Loud!, a 45-minute program featuring artists from LA Opera performing operatic favorites. Teacher materials are available to further enhance this program. This program is geared for all audiences.

Don't Be Afraid; It's Just Opera!
Acclaimed mezzo-soprano Suzanna Guzmán has performed her award-winning, one-woman show Don't Be Afraid; It's Just Opera! for more than 200,000 students. This 45-minute fun, educational and interactive program demonstrates the universal appeal of opera. With this friendly diva as a guide, the audience discovers just how entertaining and moving opera can be. This program is geared towards elementary and middle school audiences.

• Dates and Requirements: All assemblies are available for booking, based on availability. A tuned, acoustic piano in the performance area is required for all assemblies.
  
  
• Fees: Sing Out Loud!: $900 for one and $1,250 for two same-day, back-to-back assemblies. Don't Be Afraid; It's Just Opera!: $650 for one, and $1,100 for two, same-day, back-to-back assemblies.
  
  
• Deadline: Bookings are ongoing, based on availability.
  
  
• Application: Click here to download PDF

GRAND HALL STUDENT MATINEES

Give your students the complete opera experience by bringing them to Who Wants to be an Opera Singer? at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, for free!

The amazing grandeur of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion is only matched by the power of the music. Who Wants to be an Opera Singer? is a fun and interactive introduction to the world of opera, written by Mark Saltzman. With a spin of the giant opera wheel, our singers compete for the coveted Golden Throat Award and a brilliant career in opera by singing some of opera's "greatest hits" and telling us a little about the operas from which they spring. Who Wants to be an Opera Singer? includes music from the following operas: Carmen, La Traviata, The Barber of Seville, Rigoletto, and Madama Butterfly.

Once accepted into this program, LA Opera will assist you in preparing your students for the performance through a mandatory in-service. You will receive a comprehensive teachers' guide, a CD, and cross-curriculum activities. A visit by a member of the LA Opera Speakers Bureau can be requested to enhance your students' experience.

• Dates: Who Wants to be an Opera Singer? Student Matinees will take place on Thursday, February 3 & Friday, February 4, 2011 at 10:00am and 11:30am.
  REQUIREMENTS: Teachers can apply to bring a maximum of 35 students and four chaperones by submitting one original lesson plan. Accepted teachers will be required to attend an in-service on Thursday, January 13, 2011 at 4pm.
  
  
• Fee: Free of charge. Transportation is not included.
  
  
• Deadline: Monday, December 13, 2010
  
  
• Application: Click here to download PDF
  
  
• Teaching Materials: Click here to download a PDF of the Study Guide

DEMONSTRATION PERFORMANCES

LA Opera works with a variety of venues to present lively and interactive demonstration performances.

This January and February, LA Opera will introduce students to some of the "big ideas" of opera in our production of Who Wants to be an Opera Singer?, a charming and interactive introduction to the world of opera, written by Mark Saltzman. With a spin of the giant opera wheel, our singers compete for the coveted Golden Throat Award and a brilliant career in opera by singing some of opera's "greatest hits" and telling us a little about the operas from which they spring. Who Wants to be an Opera Singer? includes music from the following operas: Carmen, La Traviata, The Barber of Seville, Rigoletto, and Madama Butterfly.

• Requirements: Presenting venues are responsible for securing a student audience. Interested presenters must have the appropriate space and equipment. LA Opera provides support materials for students and teachers, and our Speakers Bureau is available to visit classrooms to further enhance this program.
  
  
• Fee: Presenting fees vary. Performances are free to students.

CLASSROOM ENRICHMENT

OPERA CLUBS
An ideal activity during or after school, an Opera Club enhances any arts curriculum by giving students the opportunity to expand their study and appreciation of opera. Opera Clubs can enjoy visits from an LA Opera staff member at club meetings for a variety of fun and educational activities.

LA Opera can offer ideas on how to start a club, garner interest and provide teaching resources and lesson plan activities based on our main stage productions, free of charge. Opera Club participants are eligible for special benefits, including complimentary dress rehearsal and/or performance tickets when available.

• Requirements: The teacher/advisor needs to develop a plan of activities and act as the coordinator.
  
  
• Fee: Free of charge.
  
  
• Application: Contact us for application information. All applicants are required to attend a special meeting to be announced. A limited number of schools can participate in this program.

VOLUNTEER OPERA SPEAKERS BUREAU
Let LA Opera's Speakers Bureau introduce your students to the extraordinary world of opera. This team of trained experts will address your students with fun and interactive presentations. For more information, please CLICK HERE.

VOICES FOR TOLERANCE - a project for justice and harmony
LA Opera continues to teach tolerance through its Education and Community Programs. Voices for Tolerance is a multi-year program which encompasses a number of main stage, school, and community-based performances and events, featuring themes of building understanding, social justice, and cooperative action.

As part of the initiative, LA Opera works with school staff to create tailored, multi-week, choral program residencies that celebrate the themes of tolerance and community. The program also provides shorter, intensive residencies to certain rural and underserved schools. This program aims to expand awareness of diversity, foster acceptance and understanding of differences, encourage collaboration and community, while increasing the love of vocal music and the arts. Classroom teachers and site staff work in direct partnership with LA Opera teaching artists to reach these goals.

• Requirements: Participating teachers and site staff must attend a mandatory planning meeting. Interested teachers should contact us for more information.