IN THIS ISSUE:                              

- Gear up for Rigoletto with A Taste of Opera Lecture and Recital This Sunday!

- Visit the New www.operaphila.org!

Opera Company Opens 2007-2008 Season
Oct. 5th with Rigoletto!

The Opera Company of Philadelphia kicks off the 2007-2008 Season with Verdi’s exciting masterpiece, Rigoletto.  With a breathtaking new set and three major, international voices coming together on the same stage for the first time, this season opener promises to excite the opera buff and the novice alike. 
Acclaimed English baritone Alan Opie stars in the title role as the hunchbacked jester, stunning Israeli-born soprano Chen Reiss is his innocent daughter Gilda, and tenor Matthew Polenzani completes the star trio as the lecherous Duke of Mantua.

The production, conceived by director Robert B. Driver and designed by Paul Shortt, seeks to provide a classic but fresh look to 16th-Century Mantua, and the perfect backdrop for arias like the famous “Caro nome” and “La donna e mobile” which have become the very hallmarks of Italian opera.  Tickets are selling fast, so don’t miss your opportunity to see this Verdi classic!

There’s still time to subscribe to the 2007-2008 Season and save up to 20% over single ticket prices for Rigoletto and all of this season’s operas.  Click here to subscribe now!

Click here to purchase tickets for Rigoletto.

 Gear up for Rigoletto With the Free Taste of Opera Lecture and Recital, This Sunday September 30th!

A Taste of Opera is the perfect introduction to every opera. Prepare for Verdi's Rigoletto this Sunday with an afternoon of music by the great Italian master.  First, University of Pennsylvania Professor Emma Dillon discusses Verdi's great masterwork Rigoletto and reviews "Who's Who" among the opera's fascinating characters. Then hear some of Verdi's greatest music as we review Great Verdi Heroines.  Join us as Opera Company soloists and Opera Company Assistant Conductor Laurie Rogers perform some of the composer’s most popular music from Rigoletto, La traviata, Falstaff, and more.

Free and open to the general public, A Taste of Opera is generously hosted by the Park Hyatt Philadelphia at the Bellevue on Broad and Locust Streets and lasts from 2pm to 4pm. 

Click here for more information.

 A New Season With a Brand New operaphila.org!

The Opera Company of Philadelphia just launched a completely redesigned website at a new address: www.operaphila.org.  Visit us online to check out all of the new music clips, blogs, behind the scenes photos, and more!  Read in-depth stories about our artists, prepare for the opera by reading about the composer and plot synopsis before you arrive at the theatre, and learn more about upcoming events from the Opera Company of Philadelphia and other cultural organizations. 

Log-on to make the new www.operaphila.org your one-stop destination for all things opera in Philadelphia.  We’ll see you online!