Fort Worth Opera Festival

This spring, visions of "Phantom of the Opera" will dance in certain fans' heads as the music genre is "in" again.

The First Annual Fort Worth Opera Festival will be held May 19-June 10 at Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth, featuring such productions as "Madame Butterfly." The famous opera will be shown May 19th and 27th and June 1st and 7th. American Airlines and the Arts Council of Fort Worth and Tarrant County are two of the sponsors of the festival which includes 11 performances.

The May 19th show starts at 8 p.m. and event cost for each show is between $10 and $142.00.

This year the festival will offer complimentary child care for its patrons during shows at the City Club of Fort Worth, one block from the hall where the event is held. The actual childcare will be provided by Clayton Child Care, which specializes in providing licensed childcare during non-school hours.

"As expectant parents and lovers of the opera, the child care services for Friday and Saturday nights will allow us to continue our involvement with the Opera," said Leadership Steering Committee Chair Kenny Fischer.

The Fort Worth Opera was started in 1946 by two former female opera singers, Mrs. E.L. Snyder and August Spain over coffee. With the help of hundreds of community volunteers the first opera production in town was pulled off in seven months, something many didn't think could be done.

The Fort Worth Opera Studio was established in 2002 as a training program for operatic artists beginning their career.

On Feb. 7th this year, marking the Fort Worth Opera's 60th anniversary, the organization decided to merge all of its famous productions into an opera festival. The group also boasts a well-known opera education program. Over 500 performers and production personnel are employed by the Fort Worth Opera.

On April 16th the Fort Worth Opera won the Bravo Award.

The Fort Worth Opera is always looking for male adult extras and you don't have to sing.

The address for the festival is 525 Commerce Street in downtown Fort Worth and the phone number is 877-212-4280.

Age limit for the shows is ten and over.

The festival is being held in lieu of the opera's 2006-2007 season.

Students desiring a more intensive study of the art are encouraged to start an opera club through the Fort Worth Opera. To do this, they are required to obtain a teacher sponsor from their school.