MetOpera

Interested in Opera but not sure how to get started?

Why not join Rich Vivrette and/or Paul Kupras for a wonderful experience?

Opera Lovers...

The MetOpera 2023-2024 season is under way with three operas this year and six next year. All shows are on Wednesday, either 1:00pm or 6:30pm. As of this date, the Regal Hacienda in Dublin is NOT showing MetOpera productions. Century theaters in Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill, Hayward, Emeryville, and Fremont are our closest options.

October 25th: Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking. Adapted from the groundbreaking memoir by Sister Helen Prejean about her ministry to condemned murderers on death row reflecting her prose and her advocacy style: direct, unaffected, and unflinchingly honest—but not without a deep understanding of the heart and humanity inside each one of us. 2hrs

November 22nd: Anthony Davis’s X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X. Presented with a potent new staging that imagines Malcolm as an Everyman whose story transcends time and space. An exceptional cast of breakout artists and young Met stars enliven the operatic retelling of the civil rights leader’s life.. 3hrs, 10min, 1 Intermission

December 13th: Daniel Catán’s Florencia en el Amazonas. Sung in Spanish and telling the enchanting story of a Brazilian opera diva who returns to her homeland to perform at the legendary opera house of Manaus - and to search for her lost lover, who has vanished into the jungle. 2hrs, 5min, 1 Intermission

January 10th: Giuseppe Verdi’s Nabucco

January 31st: Georges Bizet’s Carmen

March 13th: Giuseppe Verdi’s La Forza del Destino

March 27th: Charles Gounod’s Roméo et Juliette

April 24th: Giacomo Puccini’s La Rondine

May 15th: Giacomo Puccini’s Madama Butterfly

If you would like to be kept informed, send an e-mail to Rich Vivrette: r.vivrette@am-alarm.com.

Some frequently asked questions:

Do we have to get dressed up? No – it’s at the movie theater in Dublin
Do we go to San Jose or San Francisco? No – it’s at the movie theater in Dublin
Is it a live performance? No – it’s at the movie theater in Dublin
Do we car pool? If you want – it’s at the movie theater in Dublin.

If you want more information email Rich Vivrette at r.vivrette@am-alarm.com.

SIRS, wives, friends welcome!

Members of the group attending the Tosca performance earlier this year!

Rich Vivrette

Paul Kupras

As background to our group, we’re bringing some Couth to Your Youth with this group for SIRS and their friends and family who want to experience the beauty and majesty of classical Opera without blowing the budget or making a huge commitment of time. For the last 10 years the New York Metropolitan Opera has provided The Met: Live in HD, a series of high-definition performance transmissions to movie theaters around the world. Live performances are shown Saturday mornings, 10:00am, with encores on Wednesdays, at 1:00pm and 6:30pm, at the Regal Hacienda in Dublin.

Performances run about 3½ hours and include two 15-minute intermissions and behind-the-scenes interviews with cast and support crew. There are about 12 operas presented during a 9-month season. All operas have English subtitles on the big screen. Our group is going to center on Wednesday afternoon performances. Here is what we’re offering:

Sign up to receive the full season schedule of The Met: Live in HD series with performance schedule, name and composer of the opera. This will include time and date for all performances and recommendations for newcomers based on input from experienced opera-goers. You can set up your calendar a year in advance.
Two weeks before the opera you will receive a reminder with a synopsis of the opera with plot line, characters, names of the performers, and some YouTube previews of famous pieces.
One week before the opera you will be reminded about the opera and invited to join participants at a local spot within walking distance of the theatre for a social hour.

Tickets are $22.00 each, payable at the door. No reservations required, just show up if you want to be thoroughly mesmerized by incredible music, world-class singing, and dramatic performances that leave you emotionally drained. It’s wonderful.

If you want to get started with the MetOpera schedule, if you want to put some Couth in your Youth, drop a line to Rich Vivrette: r.vivrette@am-alarm.com. We’d love to see you on Wednesdays, but if you want to do it, but can’t stay out late, you’ll have the info you need for Saturday mornings.