My Audition for Children's Chorus

[Editor: Introducing Sadie, an on-the-go reporter for HGOco this year. Sadie is an elementary school student in the Houston area, a veteran HGO supernumerary and opera camp participant. We thought you might be interested in hearing about opera and our programs from her perspective. Enjoy periodic updates about the operatic adventures of Sadie!]

As I walked into the hallway tension filled the air. All the other kids were off in their own worlds humming their songs and smiling and laughing nervously. Some were wishing each other good luck. My heart thumped loudly, and I wasn’t even that close to auditioning. I’m sure that everyone else was feeling the same as I was. It’s my very first audition at Houston Grand Opera and I can’t say whether it made me more or less nervous.

After my audition I talked to Sam whom also auditioned.

Sam said that “I felt really nervous and scared” as he walked into his audition. “When I got there they asked me to stand on the red x by the piano, I gave my music to the pianist first, then I sang my song and left. It was really simple.” Sam replied an enthusiastic “YES!” to my question about whether he wanted to audition for another opera later. When I asked Sam if he would do his Tosca audition over again and change something about it he said, “I would start over, and do it a little louder.” When I asked how he felt before the audition compared to afterward Sam said, “A lot more scared before.” Sam says that he’s never done an audition before but he did know one person and it made it no less hard. “I sang ‘My Country ‘Tis of Thee’, and I don’t think I did well.” “Why? Because I think I sang less louder because I was nervous.”

Auditions were fun but nerve racking. I saw some of my friends from previous operas and opera camps. I had a lot of fun and I hope I get in! Auditions for the Children's Chorus happen again in early 2010, for spots in HGO's production of The Queen of Spades. Read more...

The Ultimate Field Trip - The Elixir of Love

Calling all teachers!

Beginning at 9am this Friday, August 28, HGOco is taking online ticket orders for student performances of Donizetti's The Elixir of Love this fall. We have a new process for ordering tickets - no more faxes - so be sure to read below.

First, though, the nitty gritty details:

Student Matinees (Grades 4 - 8)
November 4 and 6, 2009 at 10 AM
All tickets $10
Beginning 9 AM on Friday, August 28th find a link to Student Matinee tickets here: www.houstongrandopera.org/studentmatinees

High School Night (Grades 9+)
November 9, 2009 at 7 PM
Tickets from $15 - $26
Beginning at 9 AM on Friday, August 28th, find a link to High School Night tickets here: www.houstongrandopera.org/highschoolnight

You need a promotion code in order to purchase tickets to student performances. If you haven't received an email from us that includes a promotion code, please call us at 713-546-0230 or email us at students@houstongrandopera.org to receive the appropriate code.

We're looking forward to seeing you and your students at the opera this fall!
Read more...

Tosca Children's Chorus Auditions - sign up starting Aug. 31

We had a call today from a mother who wanted information about opportunities for her daughter to sing. And the good news is, we have a great program in which budding young vocalists can shine!

We're hosting auditions on Sunday, September 20 for the children's chorus and a solo treble role in Puccini's Tosca. Boys (with unchanged voices) and girls aged 7 - 17 are invited to audition at the Wortham Theater Center. You need to sign up in advance, read on for more information or visit us online at www.houstongrandopera.org/childrenschorus.

The opera is sung in Italian and conducted by Patrick Summers. Rehearsals start in November 2009; performances begin January 22, 2010 and run through February 7, 2010.

Children’s Chorus director for the production is Karen Reeves.
Audition Date: Sunday, September 20, 2009 from 1:00 PM – 6:00 PM
Audition Location: Wortham Theater Center
510 Preston Avenue, 6th floor
Houston, TX 77002

For this audition, the child should be prepared to sing from memory a song of his/her choice, in a non-belt style. Each child should bring a copy of their music for the pianist, whom the Opera will provide. Taped accompaniment will not be used. Individuals who wish to arrange an audition time or who want further information should contact the Opera's Rehearsal Department at 713-980-8679, beginning Monday, August 31, 2009. Read more...

How much drama can YOU create in 3 minutes?

HGO wants to put you in the director's chair!

Now this sounds cool - if only I was adept at video editing...

Choose an opera from HGO's 09/10 season and create a video that tells the story in three minutes or less. The only limit is your imagination -- and the laws of the land. Upload your video to HGO's Facebook page by September 15, 2009. Winners will receive opera tickets, fabulous prizes and at least fifteen seconds of fame.

The opera plots from which you may choose include: Donizetti's Elixir of Love; Wagner's Lohengrin; Puccini's Tosca; Britten's The Turn of the Screw; Tchaikovsky's The Queen of Spades; and Handel's Xerxes. So, let's see what you can do!

Click on "Read More" for more information about how to enter, or visit us online at: http://www.houstongrandopera.org/videocontest.

Upload your video to Houston Grand Opera’s Facebook Event Page at http://www.facebook.com/events.php?ref=sb (“Web site”) between 12:01 a.m. CST 8/11/09 and 11:59 p.m. CST 9/15/09.

Log into your Facebook account or register with Facebook. You must be a member of the Facebook Web site and comply with its terms and conditions to enter the contest. Membership to the Facebook Web site is free.

Once you have successfully logged in to Facebook and view HGO’s Video Contest Event Page, select “Attending” in the Your RSVP box on the right-hand side of the screen. Click the “Add Videos” button in the Videos section and follow the onscreen instructions to enter and upload your video submission. You may need to refresh your browser after selecting “Attending” in the RSVP box to see the Videos section.

By submitting an entry, a winner agrees to allow use of his or her entry, name and/or likeness for advertising this or similar promotions without compensation, unless prohibited by law. All entries and all rights of ownership and publication of same will become the property of Houston Grand Opera and will not be returned.

For more details, a list of rules and all applicable regulations visit us online at: http://www.houstongrandopera.org/videocontest.

Read more...

Opera to Go! delivers, starting Oct. 5

One of HGOco's most visible programs is Opera to Go!, which brings 45-minutes of fully-staged, high-energy opera to classrooms and community centers all over Texas. We've had lots of blog posts in the past about OTG (the short form that we often use here in the office) so I won't go into it too much. Suffice it to say, we've got two GREAT operas lined up for the fall.

Hansel and Gretel, the perennial favorite for people of all ages, begins touring on October 5. The cast is full of entertaining characters, one of which is an allergy-prone fairy godmother. Luckily it's not hard to find a singer who has allergies in Houston in the fall! Just kidding, it's all part of our singer's exceptional acting ability.

We're also presenting an opera that's new to Houston, it's called How Nanita Learned to Make Flan. This one is performed in a combination of English and Spanish, and it involves a pair of magic shoes, a talking parrot and the secret behind delicious flan. Know any places in Houston where we can get some good-tasting flan? Let us know! Want to share your grandmother's "secret" recipe? Post it to comments.

If you want to schedule a performance of either Hansel and Gretel or Nanita at your school or community center, visit the Opera to Go! page at www.houstongrandopera.org/hgoco.

To schedule an Opera to Go! performance, download an ORDER FORM, and email or fax it back to us!

1 performance $450 / 2 performances of same opera back-to-back $700
Maximum audience capacity is 300. Mileage charge for sites 35+ miles outside downtown Houston.

INFORMATION: ksmith@houstongrandopera.org or call 713-546-0230

Fall Tours: October 5 - December 18, 2009

Hansel and Gretel

Composer: Engelbert Humperdinck Adaptation: Kate Pogue

For Elementary and Middle Schools. This beloved fairy tale, full of magic and musical mischief, takes us to a world with gingerbread houses and not-so-nice little old ladies. In English.

How Nanita Learned to Make Flan

Composer: Enrique Gonzalez-Medina Libretto: Campbell Geeslin

For Elementary and Middle Schools. Nanita makes a pair of shoes that magically transport her far away from home. With the help of an Old Woman and parrot, she returns home and learns the secret of making delicious flan.

How Nanita Learned to Make Flan will also be at the Miller Outdoor Theatre Sept. 28 through Oct. 2 at 11 AM daily.

Spring Tours begin January 25, 2010

Cinderella in Spain / Cenicienta en España

Composer: Mary Carol Warwick Libretto:Kate Pogue

For Elementary and Middle Schools. Available Jan 25 - May 28, 2010.
Glass slippers, pumpkins and magical transformations...don't miss the allergy-prone fairy godmother and an unusual pair of evil stepsisters! In English and Spanish.

WORLD PREMIERE: an opera in conjunction with Song of Houston's Mexico 2010

For Middle and High Schools. Available mid February 2010 - May 7, 2010.
A 3,000-mile journey begins following a magical transformation. How does a butterfly find the home it has never seen, but one that its ancestors have inhabited for thousands of years? In English and Spanish.

Read more...

A New Season - Our New Look

HGOco is back in the blogosphere after a busy summer. Since the HGO mainstage season finished last May, we've hosted or co-hosted 6 summer camps, squeezed in a bit of vacation, and spent lots of time planning some great programs that begin shortly.

This is a new look for our blog, with some new functionality. Let us know what you think by posting a comment or two!


Over the next month or so, several new bloggers will begin posting - we have program participants reporting from the front lines as "embedded" bloggers and a young mobile journalist (MoJo) who will tell it like she sees it. We're still getting our facebook in order but in the meantime you can always follow us on twitter at HouGrandOpera.

So...what do we have in store? Check back tomorrow for more details...

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HSVS and College Preparation

Thomas Goedecke writes this week's blog. Thomas is a member of the Houston Grand Opera High School Voice Studio, and plans to major in music next year when he heads off to college.

I have been blessed to be apart of the Houston Grand Opera High School Voice Studio program, and to be a student at a performing arts school, and a student to some of the best musicians in the city. But even with these resources college preparation is a difficult task. The first and foremost thing that high school students need to find out is who they are.

It is not necessary to have the next 15 years planned out, but find out what excites you, what makes you happy: will it be something you want to make a career out of, or avoid it in fear of your passion becoming nothing more than work. Or if your undecided thats ok too, but you will know what kind of experience you want to have for the next four years. The second thing is applying for the colleges that match your needs. For me, it was a school with excellent composition and vocal programs. And finish with applications as soon as you possibly can. This is essential if you would like to keep your sanity.
Thirdly is to keep a detailed agenda, down to the last minute. Rehearsals, recitals, auditions, application due dates, scholarship dates, college visits, concerts, and performances are just a fraction of the things that are going to be bombarding you during senior year, and to have when and where these things are at your finger tips is really important.
Finally, forget about having too much of a social life. Keeping up with your studies is important and when your applying for colleges, you simply run out of time. Though keep in mind a night out is important, but just don't allow more improtant things, more urgent things to fall apart because of it.

Read more...