POSTPONED TO SUNDAY: Opera in the Park

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James Gill

The scene at a past Opera in the Park.

Whether you’re a devoted opera lover or a complete novice, bring the whole family to the Madison Opera’s annual free, outdoor concert in Garner Park. But bring your blankets and lawn chairs early if you want a good view of the stage — the event regularly attracts more than 15,000 spectators. This year the Madison Opera Chorus and Madison Symphony Orchestra will be joined by sopranos Jeni Houser and Michelle Johnson, tenor David Blalock, and baritone Ben Edquist. They will perform classics from opera and Broadway, including Rigoletto, La Traviata, Carousel, Annie Get Your Gun, Funny Girl and Camelot. Feast on a picnic, enjoy a cold beverage, and have your glow sticks ready — audience members are encouraged to conduct the orchestra along with maestro John DeMain. UPDATE: Moved to the rain date, Sunday, July 21.

press release: Madison Opera’s Opera in the Park celebrates its eighteenth year on Saturday, July 20, at 8 pm in Garner Park on Madison’s west side. The annual free concert of opera and Broadway favorites closes the company’s 2018/19 season and provides an enticing preview of the 2019/20 season.

A Madison summer tradition that often attracts over 14,000 people, Opera in the Park is an enchanting evening of music under the stars, featuring selections from opera and Broadway. Opera in the Park 2019 features soprano Jeni Houser, soprano Michelle Johnson, tenor David Blalock, and baritone Ben Edquist. Houser has sung many roles with Madison Opera, most recently in A Little Night Music, and returns next season as Eurydice in Orpheus in the Underworld. Johnson scored a major success with Madison Opera as Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana last season. Blalock debuted with Madison Opera in 2014 and returns this season as Orpheus in Orpheus in the Underworld. Edquist is making his debut, and will return to the company as Hawkins Fuller in Fellow Travelers in February.

The four soloists are joined by the Madison Opera Chorus and Madison Symphony Orchestra, conducted by John DeMain. The evening is hosted by Madison Opera’s General Director Kathryn Smith and WKOW TV’s 27 News co-anchor George Smith.

“Opera in the Park is the greatest performance in Madison Opera’s season,” says Smith. “It offers a truly magical blend of beautiful voices, music from many centuries, and thousands of members of our community relaxing together under the same night sky. I am grateful to all of our supporters who share our belief in the community-building power of music and help us produce this concert every summer.”

Opera in the Park 2019 features arias and ensembles from Verdi’s La Traviata, which opens the 2019/20 season in November; Spears’ Fellow Travelers, which will be performed in February; and Offenbach’s Orpheus in the Underworld, which will be performed in April. The program also includes selections from Rigoletto, La Forza del Destino, The Elixir of Love, Don Pasquale, Die Tote Stadt, The Student Prince, Funny Girl, Carousel, and more. As always, this spectacular evening will include one number conducted by the audience with light sticks.

Garner Park is located at 333 S. Rosa Road. Parking is available in the CUNA Mutual Group and University Research Park lots. Attendees are encouraged to bring picnics, blankets, and chairs. Alcohol is permitted but not sold in the park.  On the day of the concert, Garner Park will open at 7am. Audience members may not leave items in the park prior to this time.  The rain date for Opera in the Park is Sunday, July 21, at 8pm.

While Opera in the Park is free to attend, it would not be possible without the generous support of many foundations, corporations, and individuals who believe in the importance of music in the community. Madison Opera is grateful to the sponsors of Opera in the Park 2019: Presenting sponsor, the Berbeewalsh Foundation; Sponsors:  the John and Carolyn Peterson Charitable Foundation, Full Compass Systems, the Raymond B. Preston Family Foundation, University Research Park, Colony Brands, the Evjue Foundation, Johnson Financial Group, MGE Foundation, National Guardian Life, Wisconsin Arts Board, Dane Arts, and the Madison Arts Commission. WKOW, Madison Magazine, Wisconsin Public Radio, Magic 98, and La Movida are media sponsors for this community event.

RELATED EVENTS: Prelude Dinner at Opera in the Park 2019 | July 20, 2019 | 6pm

This annual fundraiser to benefit Opera in the Park helps support Madison Opera’s free gift to the community. The event includes dinner catered by Upstairs Downstairs, VIP seating at the concert, and a reception with the artists following the performance.  Tickets are $150 per person or $1,150 for a table of eight.  More information is available at www.madisonopera.org

Madison Opera is a non-profit professional opera company based in Madison, Wisconsin.  Founded in 1961, the company grew from a local workshop presenting community singers in English-language productions to a nationally-recognized organization producing diverse repertoire featuring leading American opera singers and emerging talent.  A resident organization of the Overture Center for the Arts, Madison Opera presents three annual productions in addition to the free summer concert Opera in the Park and a host of educational programming.