30 Days of Opera returns September 1-30, 2019, putting Memphis and the Mid-South on the national stage with dozens of free opera performances, the OPERA America Civic Action Regional Meeting, and the Opera & Race Symposium hosted by Rhodes College and Opera Memphis. This year will include performances at iconic locations like the Cooper-Young Festival, Germantown Festival, Memphis Pride Festival, and many more! Back by popular demand, Opera Memphis will perform at the Levitt Shell on Friday, September 13 as part of the Orion Free Music Concert Series in Overton Park.
In keeping with that same mission to be an active participant in the city, Opera Memphis has partnered with Rhodes College this year to host an academic and performance symposium - Opera & Race: Celebrating the Past, Building the Future - focusing on the role of race, both on and off the stage. This two day series will include a concert by Opera Memphis and lectures from guest speakers Anh Le (Opera Theatre of Saint Louis), Givonna Joseph (Founder and Director of OperaCréole), and Dr. Naomi André (Professor at the University of Michigan, author of Black Opera: History, Power, Engagement
The Opening Concert on Thursday, Sept. 12 celebrates the music of lost or rarely performed composers of African descent. It will include excerpts of Jonestown, an opera by Dr. Evan Williams of Rhodes College, performed by Opera Memphis, a featured performance by Carami Hilaire (pictured right), and a solo performance by Marcus King of Margaret Bond's Three Dream Portraits. This concert - as well as all Symposium events - is free and open to the public. A full schedule of Symposium events, lectures, and panels can be found online at operamemphis.org/symposium.
30 Days of Opera has garnered Opera Memphis national recognition for its civic impact and outreach initiative, so it's only fitting that Memphis serves as the meeting ground of opera company representatives from across the nation for OPERA America's Civic Action Regional Meeting. Men and women from across the United States will gather together here in Memphis, TN to look at opera as a tool for civic action, successful community engagement programs, and future programming and practices.
For more information about all Opera Memphis events happening Sept. 1 - 30, please visit www.operamemphis.org or call 901.257.3100.
Videos