LA Opera's Great Opera Choruses moves online for 2020
The annual event at The Soraya joins the LAO at Home initiative this year
(Los Angeles) May 26, 2020 — The pandemic may have forced LA Opera to cancel its annual Great Opera Choruses concert at The Soraya, so the family-friendly event will now join the company's new LAO at Home programming lineup, moving online for a virtual concert on June 7.
Grant Gershon, the company's Resident Conductor, leads the concert, spotlighting three famous choruses from popular works. The grand finale, the Anvil Chorus from Verdi's Il Trovatore, will feature audience participation—viewers of any (or no) musical ability can sing along at home, with lyrics provided onscreen, and kids will love the opportunity to hammer on kitchen pots and pans for the perfect sound effects.
Co-hosted by LA Opera and The Soraya, the concert will feature Jeremy Frank, LA Opera's Associate Chorus Master, as pianist and music supervisor.
"The cancellation of the balance of LA Opera's spring season was devastating, but for Great Opera Choruses, there is a silver lining to be found," said Christopher Koelsch, LA Opera's Sebastian Paul and Marybelle Musco President and CEO. "By moving online, the performance is likely to be seen by more people than would have experienced it in the theater. I'm incredible thankful to the County of Los Angeles and Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, whose support has made it possible for this annual tradition to continue in this new format."
“This spring would have seen our fifth Great Opera Choruses at The Soraya, a long-standing tradition with our friends from LA Opera," said Thor Steingraber, Executive Director of The Soraya. "Their ingenuity brings us the online version, and though the audience sing-along won’t be the same, these beloved pieces will no less stir our audiences listening at home.”
"Covid or no Covid, the show must go on," said Los Angeles County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl. "I’m grateful to the LA Opera for its creative thinking and for bringing this marvelous performance to even more music lovers this year by moving it online.“
The concert hits home screens at 3pm on June 7, 2020, via LA Opera's Facebook page.
About the LA Opera Chorus
The LA Opera Chorus plays an integral part in the artistic excellence for which LA Opera is known, receiving acclaim from critics and audiences alike. Consisting of highly trained professional artists, some who have been performing with company since its first season, the LA Opera Chorus is featured in most of the productions presented by the company at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.
About LAO at Home
LA Opera was the first major American opera company to create a weekly schedule of original new online programming to bring opera to audiences during the coronavirus crisis. LAO at Home launched on March 17 with the first in a series of live "Living Room Recitals" featuring artists performing in their homes. Other programming highlights include "Learn at Home (Grown-Up Edition)" opportunities for opera lovers of any experience level to dive deeper into the art form, "Opera Family Time" presentations created specially for families with children to enjoy together, "From the Vault" audio-streams of earlier performances, and "Backstage at LAO" features that take viewers behind the scenes for a look at what it takes to create world-class opera. Learn more at LAOpera.org/LAOatHome.
About LA Opera
Los Angeles is a city of enormous diversity and creativity, and LA Opera is dedicated to reflecting that vibrancy by redefining what opera can be. Once this crisis has passed, our community will need the communal and curative power of opera more than ever. LA Opera is grateful to its supporters for helping to ensure that the company has the resources needed to get through this unprecedented period. Those wanting to support LA Opera can visit LAOpera.org/donate to learn more.
About Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts (The Soraya)
Located on the campus of California State University, Northridge, The Soraya offers a vibrant performance program of classical and popular music, dance, theater, family, and international events that have served to establish The Soraya as the intellectual and cultural heart of the San Fernando Valley, and further establish itself as one of the top arts companies in Southern California. The award-winning, 1,700-seat theater was designed by HGA Architects and Engineers and was recently cited by the Los Angeles Times as “a growing hub for live music, dance, drama and other cultural events.” Learn more at TheSoraya.org.
LA Opera Media Contact
Vanessa Flores Waite
Director of Communications
vwaite@laopera.org
213.972.7554
Great Opera Choruses is made possible with generous support from Los Angeles County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl.
Additional support from the City of Los Angeles, Department of Cultural Affairs.
LA Opera is a non-profit organization dedicated to serving the greater Los Angeles community.
