Evenings with the Maestro Return to the St. Petersburg Opera, 9/2

Last season's hit series of fascinating musical explorations, Evenings with the Maestro, is returning on the first Thursday of the month. The first edition is also a preview to A Little Night Music.

A Little Night Music is set almost entirely in ¾ time, and much of it is waltz music. Was Sondheim trying to channel Johann Strauss? Why write a whole show in this meter? It turns out there are very good reasons, and Maestro Mark Sforzini has enlisted the aid of the SPO's cast for A Little Night Music to help him illustrate the brilliance of Sondheim's choice. Expect to hear selections from A Little Night Music as well as excerpts from Lehar's the Merry Widow, Strauss's Die Fledermaus, the Blue Danube, and selections by Ravel and Rachmaninoff.

The first Evenings with the Maestro will be presented at the Music Gallery, 5990 Ulmerton Road, Clearwater, at 6:00 p.m. on September 2, 2010. Each of these first Thursdays 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. Last season, this program was partially supported by the State of Florida Division of Cultural Affairs. This year, the State of Florida's arts appropriation was very small and even though we scored high in the grant evaluations, our allocated funds are extremely small. As a result we have had to raise the price of the tickets to Evenings with the Maestro so that we can cover the cost of bringing you live performances. We're still a great bargain as tickets are only $15 ($10 seniors and $8 students) and are available in advance on the St. Petersburg opera website, www.stpeteopera.org or by calling the office at 727-823-2040. Tickets are also available at the door.

Mark your calendar for this year's Evenings with the Maestro:

September 2, 2010
A Salute to the Waltz

October 7, 2010
The Art of Recitative: Telling the Story

November 4, 2010
Bad Boys and the Girls Who Love Them

January 6, 2011
Preview to Rigoletto

February 8, 2011
Baroque Zarzuela

March 3, 2011
Shakespeare in Opera

April 7, 2011
What Makes a Great Melody, Part 2

May 5, 2011
Preview to Butterfly: The Power of Puccini

Tickets for these events can be purchased through the SPO secure website now at www.stpeteopera.org.

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