March, 2008
From Connecticut Opera
Contact: Christen Eure, 860.527.0713, ext. 308, christen@ctopera.org Through a generous and innovative grant from the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, Connecticut Opera will add a performance to their spring production of The Abduction from the Seraglio, Mozart’s comic rescue mission set in the Turkish Empire of Pasha Selim. Scheduled to run for 4 nights only, the company will add a performance on June 3rd, and for one week only, all tickets to the added performance will be just $25. After the one-week sale is over, all seats will be sold at full price. The sale will take place April 25th - May 2nd and all seats, in all sections will be sold at $25, a limit of 6 tickets per order is imposed and all standard handling fees apply. The performance will take place in the Belding Theater at The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets can be purchased at The Bushnell at 166 Capitol Avenue, over the phone at 860-987-5900, or online at ctopera.org. The Hartford Foundation awarded Connecticut Opera a $300,000 grant over three years to engage and develop new opera audiences. The grant will help subsidize the reduced-price tickets, as well as help defray the costs of the additional performances in each spring season and marketing expenses. "The Hartford Foundation has given Connecticut Opera a wonderful opportunity to offer this beautiful opera at a great price," said Managing Director Linda Jackson.In the 2006-2007 Season, Connecticut Opera debuted in the Belding Theater at The Bushnell with 4 sold out performances of Così fan tutte. For most opera goers, adding a performance means that they now have the opportunity to see the opera, and to see it from seats that are normally taken very early on by subscribers. "This grant is intended to open up opera to everyone," said Mary-Ellen Powell, senior program officer for the Hartford Foundation. "Hopefully, once people realize how enjoyable performances are, they will become regular customers." Connecticut Opera tried this sale with La Cenerentola, in an effort to draw a new audience, and the result was a success, selling more than 300 seats in the first half hour and nearly the whole house by the end of the week. The added performance eventually sold out, and an overwhelming percentage of audience members surveyed said that this was their first Connecticut Opera experience, and that they would come again. "We were so impressed with the turnout for the sale held in February for their last production, introducing many new people to opera, and we hope that this grant will help them to continue their efforts." For more information about the upcoming season or to subscribe, contact Connecticut Opera at 860.527.0713. Additional information, including ticket prices and seating charts, can be found online at www.ctopera.org. Hartford Foundation for Public Giving is the community foundation for the 29-town Greater Hartford region, dedicated to improving the quality of life for all residents of the community. For over 80 years, the Foundation has received contributions from generous individuals and families, and last year awarded more than $26 million in grants to a broad range of nonprofits. For more information about the Foundation, visit www.hfpg.org or call 548-1888. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Main stage productions of Connecticut Opera are supported, in part, by funding from the Aetna Foundation, the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism, donors to the Greater Hartford Arts Council’s United Arts Campaign, the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, LES Investment Partners, Lincoln Financial, the MassMutual Foundation for Hartford, Inc., Pratt & Whitney, and with the support of United Technologies Corporation. Connecticut Opera participates in the LET’S GO card program of the Greater Hartford Arts Council. ABOUT CONNECTICUT OPERA
Founded in 1942, Connecticut Opera is the sixth oldest professional opera company in the United States. Its mission is to preserve and advance the operatic art form, to make opera accessible to a diverse population, to educate, enlighten and entertain through the medium of opera and to assist young artists, directors, designers and technicians in the pursuit of careers in the operatic field. Additional information on Connecticut Opera, tickets and performances can be found on the Web at www.ctopera.org. |
