Fort Worth Opera has announced major changes to its leadership. Fort Worth Opera General Director Afton Battle was elected to the OPERA AMERICA Board of Directors and will serve as Co-Chair of the Membership and Development Council. Battle took over in September 2020 for Nelson Claytor, Ph. D., who has served for eight years on the board (including the last two {…}
Fort Worth Opera (FWO) has announced its 2021-22 season which marks the 75th anniversary of the company. The upcoming season shifts away from FWO’s festival model to year-round programming. Here’s what the company has in store for its audiences. The season kicks off with a special one-evening only performance of “Entre Amigos: A Concert in Celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.” {…}
Fort Worth Opera and United Unlimited partnered for a Juneteenth Jamboree, as part of 94-year-old social impact leader Opal Lee’s 2.5-mile annual walk to Tarrant County Courthouse in downtown Fort Worth. Before the parade began, hundreds of supporters gathered at Evans Avenue Plaza in the historic Southside neighborhood to join the “Grandmother of Juneteenth.” Bass Keron Jackson performed a four-song {…}
Fort Worth Opera has announced a series of performances in May and June 2021. First in the line will be a presentation of six scenes from Massenet’s opera “Manon” performed in transit, starring soprano Megan Koch. Performance date: May 6, 2021 The “Mother’s Day Tea & Teddy Bear Tea” socially-distanced event will showcase live performances from the FWO Lesley Resident {…}
Fort Worth Opera has announced a new partnership with Dementia Friendly Fort Worth and the United Way Area Agency on Aging in Texas. Together, they will launch “Music, Memory, and More,” a seven-week series that is designed to engage individuals living with dementia in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. The performances will feature guest artists from Fort Worth Opera, as well {…}
Fort Worth Opera (FWO) has announced an expansion of its 2021 spring lineup that comprises a film festival in partnership with the Metropolitan Opera, a virtual celebration of Black History Month, a collaboration with Opera San José, drive-in events, and more. For the first time in FWO’s 74-year history, the company will collaborate with the Metropolitan Opera to create an {…}
Fort Worth Opera (FWO) has announced “A Night of Black Excellence: Past, Present, and Future,” a virtual benefit concert to celebrate Black History Month, on Sunday, February 21. Hosted by Tashara Parker, the showcase will feature internationally renowned artists including Patrice P. Eaton, Nicole Heaston, Cameo Humes, Keron Jackson, Latonia Moore, NaGuanda Nobles, Kenneth Overton, Chivonne Perkins, Adam Richarson, Audra {…}
Fort Worth Opera will present “Music Speaks: The Language of Poetry and Libretti Workshop Series” starting this January. First up, Lesley Resident Artists and select graduate-level voice students will work alongside pianist, conductor, librettist, Italian grammar and poetry teacher Lucy Yates, in a seminar on Italian art songs and arias. Online audiences will also get a chance to engage in {…}
This calendar year has been a difficult one for the world and for the music industry. It tested artists in ways they never thought they would. And yet it also showed resilience, love, and humility. It was a year where generosity was predominant and where artists united for a better cause. Usually, at this point in time, OperaWire has a {…}
Fort Worth Opera (FWO) announced the world premiere of “Bernadette’s Cozy Book Nook,” a film by composer and FWO Artistic Director Joe Illick and Pulitizer Prize and Grammy® Award-winning librettist Mark Campbell. The film, part of FWO’s Green Room digital initiative, premieres on January 14, 2021, at 7:30 p.m. CST, and runs through January 24. “Bernadette’s Cozy Book Nook,” is {…}
Fort Worth Opera has announced a number of new community initiatives for audiences in the region. The first is the launch of “FWO GO,” a new series of pop-up performances to be held in neighborhoods throughout Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. Beginning on October 24, the company’s Lesley Resident Artists will perform opera, musical theatre, and American standards, from a {…}
