Kudos of the Month: Tulsa Opera
PEARL FISHERS: Tulsa Opera General Director and CEO Greg Weber, right, and Artistic Director Tobias Picker stand with the cast of the Pearl Fishers in October: second from left, Aleksey Bogdanov, Aaron Blake, Sarah Shafer and Yunpeng Wang.
Courtesy Tulsa Opera
Founded in 1948, Tulsa Opera is entering its 70th year of presenting grand opera to the region, with its 2017-2018 season, beginning in the fall, to mark its 70th season.
Tulsa Opera is the 16th oldest opera company in the United States and the oldest professional performing arts company in Oklahoma.
In 1904, the city’s first documented opera performance took place: Gounod’s Faust, performed at the Epperson Opera House on Main Street. Faust will return as the kick-off performance for the 2017-2018 season.
Over the decades, Tulsa Opera has garnered national and international acclaim, drawing top names in opera, including Simon Estes, Beverly Sills and Luciano Pavarotti, and hosting the debuts of several young singers, including Joyce DiDonato and Stephanie Blythe, who have gone on to major stardom.
Since 2010, Tulsa Opera has expanded its commitment to education and doubled the size of Tulsa Youth Opera’s training program and now presents a children’s opera each year.
This year, it will be the American premiere of a family opera Pierangelo Valtinoni’s The Snow Queen, on June 17 and 18.
Up next for Tulsa Opera’s 2016-2017 season is an international, star-studded production of Giacomo Puccini’s Tosca on May 5 and 7.
Updated 04-25-2017
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