WABA’S CRAB COVE CONCERT OPENER MAY 14 FEATURES
OPEN OPERA, LOCAL ALAMEDA SINGERS
Alameda, CA, May 5, 2010 –
Open Opera will present world-famous opera favorites at the 2010 season’s first free Concert at Crab Cove on Friday, May 14 from 5:30 – 7:30 PM in West Alameda.
The first Concert at Crab Cove marks Open Opera’s second Alameda performance. Singers from throughout northern California will sing opera favorites by Puccini, Mozart, Verdi, and others. On June 20, 2009, Open Opera offered its Alameda premiere at Franklin Park, where 300 people including mothers with infants, retired couples on bikes, picnicking families, and kids sitting in trees listened to famous opera arias. Last July about 3000 people enjoyed two free performances of Mozart’s “Marriage of Figaro” Berkeley’s sunny John Hinkel Park.
Open Opera will offer more outdoor concerts this summer, plus four performances of W. A. Mozart’s opera “Don Giovanni” at John Hinkel Park on August 7, 8, 13, and 14.
Artistic Director Olivia Stapp co-founded Open Opera “to bring free, professional opera to Bay Area parks and use public space to build community through the arts…We wanted to return opera to its informal origins. At a beautiful venue like Crab Cove a music lover can listen, play with the kids, or picnic during a concert.” After a long and successful international opera career as a soprano, Stapp is offering Master classes for talented northern California professional singers as well as places to sing in the great outdoors. Executive Director Ellen St. Thomas, a co-founder of the nonprofit group, says Open Opera “makes opera accessible and enjoyable for a wider audience, without cost or formality…We couldn’t wait to come back to Alameda after the wonderful welcome we received at Franklin Park last summer.”
“We’re bringing opera to the public for free in a time of economic uncertainty, and using public outdoor spaces to build community through the arts,” adds mezzo-soprano Elizabeth Baker, Open Opera’s third co-founder and its Creative Director. Baker performed the role of Cherubino in last summer’s Figaro. “It was great to see the kids sitting in the trees and enjoying the music at Franklin Park.”
The Crab Cove Visitor Center is at 1252 McKay Avenue, just off Central Avenue and Webster Street. Food and refreshments will be available for purchase, and BikeAlameda will provide free Valet Bike Parking at these free concerts produced by the West Alameda Business Association (WABA). Carpooling, walking, or bicycling are recommended: car parking is limited in the neighborhood.
Open Opera is supported by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and by private donations. For more information on Open Opera, future performances, master classes, or to volunteer or support opera in public spaces, visit www.openopera.net or contact Executive Director Ellen St. Thomas (ellen@openopera.net; 510-547-2471).