CENTRAL CITY – Central City Opera’s 2015 Festival runs July 11 through August 9 and features four extraordinary stories spanning the genres of opera and musical theater. All four productions will be performed in Central City and this summer’s two one-act operas will also be presented on the road in Colorado.
The 2015 Festival begins at the intimate Central City Opera House with one of opera’s greatest romances, Verdi’s La Traviata, followed by a brave knight’s quest for “The Impossible Dream” in Leigh’s Man of La Mancha. Also included in this year’s offerings are two one-of-a-kind one-act operas. Don Quixote and the Duchess by Boismortier brings laughs courtesy of the practical joke that befalls a wandering yet courageous knight. This offering will be performed at the Lanny and Sharon Martin Foundry Rehearsal Building in Central City and at the First Methodist Church in Fort Collins. Based on the church parable, Britten’s The Prodigal Son is the powerful story of the return of a wayward son which will be presented in Central City and Colorado Springs churches. Both one-acts will be performed in English.
Festival single show tickets start at $25 and go up to $102, based on availability. Two-pack subscribers who purchase both Central City Opera House shows can save up to 25% on additional show tickets, along with more exclusive opportunities. One-act opera tickets start at $25 ($23 for two-pack subscribers). Group discounts are offered for ten or more people. All prices are subject to change based on availability. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit www.centralcityopera.org or call 303-292-6700.
2015 CCO Festival Shows
The 2015 Festival opens with Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata, running July 11 through August 8. La Traviata will be performed at the Central City Opera House in Italian with English supertitles. This famous romantic opera of tragic love tells the story of the radiant yet ill mistress Violetta Valery who finds true love and abandons her life as a party girl to be with the young nobleman, Alfredo Germont. His father demands that she sacrifice their love and as Alfredo fights to win her back, it may well be too late.
La Traviata is based on Alexander Dumas fils’ novel, The Lady of the Camelias, the same novel on which the play Camille is based which opened Central City Opera’s first festival in 1932. CCO’s most recent production of La Traviata was staged in 2007 to commemorate the company’s 75th anniversary festival.
Central City Opera celebrates the Power of Women with dynamic events addressing the evolving role of women in society, inspired by the leading lady of La Traviata. The next event will be held on June 25 hosted by Eden Lane of InFocus on CPT12 and will feature a lively conversation on The Power of Women in the Arts. Learn of the challenges and triumphs of women who work in the arts world, many in traditional male roles, and others who take a production from the page to the stage from Colorado’s leading ladies in the arts. The event will be held from 6 to 8 pm at Colorado Ballet’s Armstrong Center for Dance at 1075 Santa Fe Drive and is free and open to the public.
For more information and updates about The Power of Women events, visit www.CentralCityOpera.org/pow.
Man of La Mancha is a Tony award-winning musical full of heart and adventure with music by Mitch Leigh, lyrics by Joe Darion and book by Dale Wasserman. This play within a play depicts Don Miguel de Cervantes who acts out a story for his fellow prisoners as he awaits his trial by the Spanish Inquisition. In his “play”, he becomes Don Quixote, a fanciful knight on a quest to rid the world of his mortal enemy. This uplifting ode to remaining true to your ideals in the face of all odds features the timeless and popular song, “The Impossible Dream.” Man of La Mancha runs July 18 through August 9 at the Central Opera House and is performed in English.
For the 2015 Festival, Central City Opera is collaborating with Opera Theatre of the Rockies, Opera Fort Collins, and Loveland Opera Theatre with the goal of reaching new audiences. To that end, the productions of Don Quixote and the Duchess and The Prodigal Son are short, presented in non-traditional spaces, have an affordable admission fee and are performed in English. Don Quixote and the Duchess by French Baroque composer Joseph Bodin de Boismortier is based on an episode in Cervantes’ novel, Don Quixote, wherein a Duke and Duchess amuse themselves by creating an elaborate ruse to fool the title character. This production, rich with incisive, quick and ironic turns, is the regional premiere of the opera which provides a completely different episode from that featured in Man of La Mancha. This production is performed in English in the Atwill Gilman Studio in the Lanny and Sharon Martin Foundry Rehearsal Building in Central City at 12:30 pm on July 28 and August 1; in Ft. Collins it will be offered at 12:00 pm at the First United Methodist Church on August 6. Don Quixote and the Duchess will be performed in English.
The Prodigal Son is one of Benjamin Britten’s three operas based on church parables. In this one-act opera, a son is bored with life on his father’s farm and takes his inheritance to explore an exciting city life. The biblical tale tells of his return, starving and penniless. When he arrives home to beg forgiveness, his father accepts him with open arms, much to the dismay of his older brother. The story will be performed in English at St. James United Methodist Church in Central City at 12:30 pm on July 29 and August 5; in Colorado Springs at 12 pm on July 30 at First Christian Church.
The pair of one-acts features artists of the Bonfils-Stanton Foundation Artists Training Program. For complete details on the 2015 Festival shows please visit www.centralcityopera.org.
Additional 2015 CCO Festival Offerings
In addition to its slate of opera for 2015, Central City Opera continues to present innovative offerings that will enhance the Festival experience and engage new audiences.
Opera Notes (45 minutes before shows in the Central City Opera House)
Free pre-performance talks 45 minutes before each Central City Opera House show at the Williams Stables Theatre.
Lunch and a Song (July 15, 19, 22 and August 2) Lunch and a 30-minute performance by a Bonfils-Stanton Foundation Training Program Artist will whet audience member’s opera appetite at the relaxed and historic Teller House. Performances are accompanied by a lunch prepared by Kevin Taylor’s Face Bar restaurant and precede Opera House performances with a start time of 11:45 am. Tickets are just $30.
Short Works (July 15, 17, 19, 21, 22, 25; August 2, and 7) See the stars of tomorrow in Short Works, featuring members of CCO’s Bonfils-Stanton Foundation Artists Training Program. These 30-minute performances are staged opera scenes from the world’s most popular operas. Held at the intimate Williams Stables Theatre across the street from the Opera House at 1:15 pm, tickets are only $15 ($10 for subscribers).
Post-Op (Formerly Après-Opera) (July 24, 25, 31) Following select weekend evening Central City Opera House shows, festival goers will have the opportunity to enjoy cocktails and impromptu performances by the company’s talented 2015 performers at the Teller House. Free admission.
Nina Odescalchi Kelly Family Matinee (August 4, 2:30 pm) Attendees can introduce themselves and their children to opera at a special matinee of La Traviata at the Central City Opera House that includes a narrator’s preview before each act and an autograph session with the singers. Tickets are $15 for kids (6-18), and $25 for adults. (Prices are subject to change based on availability.) For an extra $10, festival goers can add pre-show Central City activities.
Boomer Bus (July 19, 25 and August 2) Opera goers between the ages of 50 to 65 can travel to Central City in style in 2015. The Boomer Bus will be offered on July 19 and August 2 for the matinee performance of La Traviata and on Saturday, July 25 for the Man of La Mancha matinee. Boomers will board a bus in Denver (10:00 a.m. from Sports Authority in Glendale and 10:30 a.m. from Simms Steakhouse off of 6th Ave), enjoy a glass of champagne and be treated to a live history presentation of Central City and CCO, a catered lunch in the gardens, a behind the scenes experience, a Short Works program and a full live 2:30 pm matinee performance in the Opera House.
The entertaining bus ride returning to Denver will include an opportunity for a Q&A session with a member of CCO’s Education and Community Engagement team. The complete package is priced at $95 per person/$180 per couple. Subscribers can add the Boomer Bus event for $30. (The bus ride only is just $20 round trip.) Visit http://centralcityopera.org/ bus for additional information.
Afternoon at the Opera (July 22) Presented by the Central City Opera Guild, this unique experience includes a special lunch with an insider’s look at Central City Opera and the Man of La Mancha matinee. Catered lunch begins at 11:45 am in the historic Johnson House with the chance to meet an artist from the 2015 Festival. Tickets for the complete afternoon are $79.00; an additional fee secures parking. For all details, please visit https://centralcityopera.org/afternoon.
To stay and play, please visit CentralCityOpera.org and click on Your Visit for ideas and options on where to stay, dine, picnic and play in Central City and Black Hawk.
Central City Opera is a musical and theatrical experience like no other, wowing audiences since 1932. The 2015 Festival offers two productions presented in the jewel box theatre nestled in the Rocky Mountains setting of Central City. The one-acts are one-of-a-kind, presented in historic places and creative spaces.
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