St. Petersburg Opera Presents 'Evenings with the Maestro: Comedy in Opera', 1/7

St. Petersburg Opera's popular Evenings with the Maestro series returns with a rollicking exploration of comedy in opera, presented on January 7. Using illustrations from Rossini, Bernstein, and Mozart, Maestro Mark Sforzini will discuss how the musical writing supports the comedic ideas in the story or the libretto. Many composers use clever musical devices to make the characters funny and SPO singers from the cast of the upcoming Così fan tutte will demonstrate with arias from various operas.

This program will feature Wade Thomas, last seen at SPO as Germont in La Traviata, and Così principals Cassandra Black, Toby Newman, Michelle Seipel, Benjamin Bunsold, Steven LaBrie, and Benjamin LeClair, all of whom are making their St. Petersburg Opera debuts. The presentation will be at the Music Gallery, 5990 Ulmerton Road, Clearwater, at 6:00 p.m. on January 7, 2010.

Each of these first Thursday of the month lectures addresses a different theme to enhance your understanding of opera and of music in general and lasts approximately 90 minutes. Following the program, the audience is invited to join the Maestro and the cast for conversation and refreshments at a local restaurant. Details will be announced at the performance.

Tickets are $10 ($5 seniors and students) and are available in advance on the St. Petersburg opera website, www.stpeteopera.org or by calling the office at 727-823-2040. All tickets at the door will be $10.

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