(Photo credit: Astrid Riecken)

UPDATE: Due to inclement weather, the event will be moved to St. Bart’s Church in New York City. 

Italian conductor Alvise Casellati has announced that the Opera Italiana is in the Air will perform a free concert in Central Park on June 26 at 7 p.m.

The free concert titled “Peace on Earth: The Art of Nature” will take place at the Naumburg Bandshell in Central Park, with the hope for this concert is to make opera more accessible. Opera Italiana implemented this by not charging admission, choosing a casual and public location, as well as the collaboration between top industry professionals and young musicians. Performers will dress casually allowing for a more modern, informal, and diverse atmosphere.

The unique program includes “All Around Earth” written by 11-year-old Issac Thomas who is a student at The Juilliard School. Audiences will also hear the Rising Voices Choir from the Music Therapy Department at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Hospital, and much more. The concert will be streamed to patients at the hospital and through the YouTube channel of Opera Italiana. Soloists include Angela Meade, Valentina Gargano, and Mariam Suleiman, among others.

New York City is the second stop on the Opera Italiana is in the Air Summer 2023 Concert tour. They will conclude with a performance on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. in September.