Glimmerglass Festival Sets 2015 Events: Concerts, Live Theatre & More!

The Glimmerglass Festival announces further information about its 2015 season, which celebrates the Cooperstown-based company's 40th anniversary. In addition to four mainstage productions, the summer festival presents concerts, lectures, public master classes and more.

In 2015, Glimmerglass will present new productions of Mozart's The Magic Flute, Verdi's Macbeth, Vivaldi's Cato in Utica and Bernstein's Candide. The Festival, which runs July 10 through August 23, also features numerous events throughout the calendar with guest artists and Young Artists, members of the company's apprentice program.

"It was through the conviction of a group of dreamers with a passion for opera, and a community that embraced the arts, that Glimmerglass is able to celebrate 40 years in 2015," Artistic & General Director Francesca Zambello said. "The 40th anniversary Festival features many opportunities for the community, opera lovers and newcomers to look back on accomplishments, celebrate, and enjoy great performances as we look ahead to the next generations."

On August 2, Artist in Residence Eric Owens, who will star on the mainstage as Macbeth, joins in-demand tenor Lawrence Brownlee in the Alice Busch Opera Theater for a concert they've long discussed performing. A 40th Anniversary Concert on August 16 will include performances by guest artists and Young Artists, celebrating Glimmerglass' four-decade milestone. Concert tickets are $40 for adults and $15 for youths 12 and younger.

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will return for her fourth appearance at The Glimmerglass Festival on July 18, when she will share her passion for opera and her unique perspective on law in the arts. The program will feature a lively balance of performance and commentary, with members of the Young Artists Program enacting selected scenes that deal with law and justice. Tickets are $40 and $15 for youths 12 and younger.

Two major divas join Glimmerglass to work with members of the Young Artists Program in public master classes. Deborah Voigt, inaugural Glimmerglass Artist in Residence, joins the company August 7, and renowned mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade presents on August 21. Tickets are $30 and $10 for youths 12 and younger.

New in 2015, the company will premiere a children's opera with music by Ben Moore and libretto by Kelley Rourke. Odyssey is an action-packed retelling of a hero's journey homeward, which will feature the Glimmerglass Festival Children's Chorus and members the Young Artists Program. Odyssey will be presented in the intimate venue of the Cooperstown Theatre Festival, a short distance from the Festival's main Alice Busch Opera Theater. Presented August 11, 13, 18 and 20 at 11 a.m., tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for youths 12 and under.

Another second-stage option during the Festival is the Meet Me at the Pavilion series. With ticket prices ranging from $10 to $20, these brief cabaret-style performances occur throughout the summer in an intimate venue next to the mainstage and feature both guest performers and Young Artists in programs entitled Gent's Night Out and Ladies' Night Out, as well as Bernstein's Trouble in Tahiti and Perfect Pitch, a baseball-themed performance exploring the music of America's favorite pastime. Additionally, every Thursday, July 30 through August 20, members of the Young Artists Program will present a baseball-themed concert at the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

ShowTalk is the company's lecture series of discussions with eminent scholars and artists paired with live performances by members of the Young Artists Program. On August 1, Gregory Nagy, Director of Harvard University's Center for Hellenic Studies, will discuss Cato the Younger as a complement to the mainstage production of Vivaldi's Cato in Utica. This will be directly followed by a program entitled Enlightenment, Freemasonry and Revolution. On August 8, Leonard Bernstein's daughter, Jamie Bernstein, writer and broadcaster, will present A Bernstein Symposium with special guests. Opera Lafayette Artistic Director Ryan Brown will speak August 15 on Vivaldi, paired with renowned British author, travel writer and television personality John Julius Norwich speaking on Voltaire and the Enlightenment. Finally, on August 16, company Artistic & General Director Francesca Zambello and members of the Young Artists Program will preview the 2016 Festival. ShowTalk tickets are $25 and $10 for youths 12 and younger.

Three literary events will take place in June and July, as the company once again collaborates with historic Hyde Hall, with subsequent events at the Cooperstown Theatre Festival. On June 13 at Hyde Hall, located in Glimmerglass State Park, Moonshine Revelers and Shades of Night will explore the supernatural elements in Shakespeare's works. Company members will perform excerpts from plays and operas, as well as other musical settings of Shakespeare texts. Literary Voices of Candide, the next event in the series, takes place at the Cooperstown Theatre Festival on July 11 and 24 and will feature company members performing readings and songs by the many writers who contributed to Candide's book and lyrics, including Richard Wilbur, Stephen Sondheim, Lillian Hellman and Dorothy Parker. Tickets for all literary events are $20 for adults and $10 for youths 12 and younger.

YOUNG ARTISTS PROGRAM

Members of the company's Young Artists Program will be featured August 14, when a selection of Young Artists performs the principal roles in The Magic Flute. Tickets are $25 and $10 for youths 12 and younger.

Now in its fourth year of featuring visual art works, the 2015 installment of Art Around Campus will feature The Magic Flute set designer Troy Hourie's three-part modern landscape installation, offering distinct spaces for both sharing stories and quiet personal reflection. Previous installations have included a pair of grapevine-woven elephants and a ship sculpture in homage to past productions of Aida and The Flying Dutchman.

Free opportunities also abound at the Festival with pre-show previews, backstage tours, question-and-answer sessions with the cast and the opportunity to watch as the production crew changes the scenery from one show to the next.

New subscriptions are now on sale, and single mainstage tickets go on sale January 26, 2015. Tickets to events are available to subscribers now. For ticket prices and more information, call the Box Office at (607) 547-2255 or visit www.glimmerglass.org.

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