School Programs

Kentucky Opera’s education programs incorporate essential core curriculum elements such as terminology, singing, improvisation and movement to complement your arts or humanities lesson plans. Contact Deanna Hoying for information on our school programs.

STUDENT DISCOUNT: Students* are offered $20 tickets to any opera production!
Call the box office at 502.584.4500 for details.
* Must have valid student ID

Final Dress Rehearsal For Students

Kentucky Opera presents a special opportunity for students to attend the final dress rehearsal of each opera every season. Kentucky Opera provides on-line study guides and other opera information. This program is designed for students from third grade through college. All final dress rehearsals take place at the W.L. Lyons Brown Theatre and begin at 7pm. There is no late seating. Tickets are $5 and must be purchased in advance through the Kentucky Opera Education Department. This program sells out quickly. Elementary, Middle and High School Students

• CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA/I PAGLIACCI : Wednesday, September 22 at 7pm
  THE ELIXIR OF LOVE : Wednesday, October 20 at 7pm
  MADAME BUTTERFLY : Wednesday, November 17 at 7pm

Study Guides for Teachers and Students

Study guides are available on-line for teachers to help them prepare their students for attending an opera performance and to assist them in incorporating opera education into their classroom curriculum. Study guides include information about the composer, librettists, historical circumstances of the composition, relevant articles for multi-curricular applications, and suggested pre- and post- performance activities. All study guides are available Teacher Resources.

 

Student Tickets

Opera tickets are always available to students for a flat rate of $20 for any regular performance with valid student identification. Students are encouraged to download a study guide with information about the opera and are invited to attend the Opera Preview lectures before the performance as well as other activities surrounding the performances.

OH FREEDOM! school tour

During January and February 2011, Kentucky Opera will tour Oh Freedom! The OH FREEDOM! musical journey begins in Africa and follows a chronological path from the Middle Passage to songs of slavery to the Civil Rights movement and finally to the election of the first African-American President of the United States. Audiences will learn how the music of West Africa became the call and response songs of slavery and how codes were hidden in the songs to help slaves to freedom through the Underground Railroad. The journey continues to New York and the Harlem Renaissance as well as the world of opera with Gershwin’s PORGY AND BESS. We recognize the importance of the great African-American opera star Marian Anderson and her role in the Civil Rights movement. And we honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The musical journey ends with the performance of A CHORUS OF HOPE composed specifically for OH FREEDOM! by Louisville composer and musician, Harry Pickens. The study guide for OH FREEDOM! elaborates on the musical and historical eras being performed. This study guide is available under Teacher Resources. Cost: $500

Opera Bound

In the fall of 2009, Kentucky Opera’s Education Department launched a new literary campaign entitled Opera Bound. This annual program ties one of the  seasons’ opera productions to its origins in literature. For 2010 Brown-Forman FALL SEASON, Opera Bound will focus on Giacomo Puccini’s MADAME BUTTERFLY, featuring Asian authors with East vs. West culture and/or colonialism as the main themes. Kentucky Opera's Education Department, along with participating community and school organizations, will provide opportunities for students and adults to experience MADAME BUTTERFLY through multiple art forms and discussions. Current partners include The Crane House/Asia Institute, Louisville Free Public Library, National Center for Family Literacy, JCPS and the JCPS Ahrens Adult Education Center and The Speed Art Museum.

Check back for a complete schedule of Opera Bound events.

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