(Photo Credit: Courtesy of Artist)

Baritone Babatunde Akinboboye will present “Hip Hopera” program at Sierra Madre Playhouse on Aug. 28 and 29, 2026.

The performances, accompanied by DJ Amond Jackson, fuse operatic singing with hip hop rhythm and spoken word. Akinboboye will feature music from “Carmen,” “Rigoletto,” “La Traviata,” and “The Marriage of Figaro.” Akinboboye created the Hip Hopera concept in 2018, when a viral video combining the two idioms drew more than 10 million views and coverage from Time.com and Classic FM, among other outlets.

A Nigerian American baritone, Akinboboye has performed with Los Angeles Opera, Opera San Jose, Opera Santa Barbara, Long Beach Opera, and Utah Opera. He was a regional finalist of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and a finalist at the International Eisteddfod Vocal Solo Competition in Llangollen, Wales.

Both performances take place at 8 p.m.