Media Release from The Dallas Opera
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Thursday, October 10, 2019
Contact: Suzanne Calvin 214.443.1014
suzanne.calvin@dallasopera.org
THE DALLAS OPERA IS PROUD TO HOST
FIRST NIGHT 2019
WITH PRESENTING SPONSOR,
TOLLESON WEALTH MANAGEMENT
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KIM AND GREG HEXT, CHAIRS
CAROL AND DON GLENDENNING, DINNER CHAIRS
The Winspear Family, Honorary Chairs
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In Partnership—for the FIRST time—with the Dallas Zoo!
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The Dallas Opera’s
Season-Opening Celebrations
Marking Our Tenth Anniversary in the WOH
Friday, October 18, 2019
The Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House
AT&T Performing Arts Center, Dallas TX
DALLAS, TX, OCTOBER 10, 2019 – The Dallas Opera is proud to present the pinnacle of a two-day celebration to mark the opening of the Dallas Opera’s 2019-2020 “Standing Ovation” Season: FIRST NIGHT, presenting sponsor, Tolleson Wealth Management, on Friday, October 18, 2019 at the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House in the AT&T Performing Arts Center.
FIRST SIGHT and FIRST NIGHT 2019 are the official opening events of a season-long observance of TDO’s tenth anniversary in the internationally-acclaimed Winspear Opera House. After more than half a century of legendary performances in the Music Hall at Fair Park, The Dallas Opera moved into a spectacular new venue in the Dallas Arts District in October 2009.
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Kim and Greg Hext are serving as Chairs for this elegant, eagerly-anticipated evening.
“In a remarkably short time, FIRST NIGHT has come to represent the quintessential Opening Night celebration with its potent combination of glamour, theatricality, great music, and fine cuisine—in a truly magical setting,” says Chair Kim Hext.
“Greg and I were so honored to be asked to Chair this year’s FIRST SIGHT and FIRST NIGHT, coinciding with the tenth anniversary of the opening of the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House and performances of Mozart’s The Magic Flute. We would love for this season’s spectacular kick-off events to ‘raise the bar’ on the next decade of Dallas Opera Opening Weekends.”
Honorary Chairs (as befits the tenth anniversary in one of the world’s most beautiful new opera houses) are the members of The Winspear Family, for whom the opera house is named.
“We are thrilled to celebrate the memory of Margot and Bill Winspear and their passion for great opera,” explained Honorary Chair Don Winspear. “Our family takes personal pride in my parents’ vision for a world-class opera house, achieved through the hard work and efforts of many, many benefactors, artists and professionals. Together, they created a performance venue that has and will continue to welcome all the people of Dallas for generations to come.”
For the FIRST time in its ten-year history in the Winspear Opera House, The Dallas Opera will “take a walk on the wild side” and partner with the nationally-renowned Dallas Zoo, which will have special two-and-four-footed representatives present for the Opening Night festivities.
Zoo sponsors for FIRST NIGHT are Diane and Hal Brierley.
“We are tremendously excited about this unprecedented partnership and the attention it will bring to the living treasures we have at the Dallas Zoo,” notes Honorary Chair Ellen Winspear.
“Mozart’s masterpiece includes a charming scene in which a fantastical collection of wild animals is tamed by the sound of a magic flute. Dallas Opera patrons on October 18 will find the live versions in the Winspear even more impossible to resist!”
The people watching begins at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, October 18, 2019 with a red carpet entrance and private reception. The arrivals will be followed at 6:00 p.m. with a seated theme dinner carefully prepared by Wolfgang Puck Catering and Chaired by Carol and Don Glendenning.
“Don and I love to gather friends from near and far to sit down to dine together,” explains Chair Carol Glendenning. “Hosting this superb dinner party is a chance for us to raise a glass with all the many friends of The Dallas Opera, in support of the hard work and phenomenal artistry that make world-class productions, like this fall’s The Magic Flute and The Golden Cockerel, possible.
“I’m sure we can anticipate an unforgettable culinary experience on Opening Night,” she adds.
The Linda and Mitch Hart Season Opening Night Performance of Mozart’s The Magic Flute will begin at 8:00 p.m. (please note the special time) featuring a star-studded international cast conducted by Maestro Emmanuel Villaume, The Mrs. Eugene McDermott Music Director.
Following the Linda and Mitch Hart Season Opening Night Performance of Sir Peter Hall’s acclaimed production of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s The Magic Flute, FIRST NIGHT celebrations will resume around 11 p.m. with an exuberant After Party featuring the popular dance band, Professor D, and a chance for patrons to hobnob with members of the cast and each other!
Hand-crafted libations and delicious culinary bites will keep guests of The Dallas Opera energized from the first notes through to the last dance. Wolfgang Puck Sweet & Savory will provide the delicious noshes, desserts, coffee and specialty cocktails.
For additional details, visit www.dallasopera.org. To purchase tickets to FIRST NIGHT, or if you have additional questions, please contact Dallas Opera Special Events Manager Tracy Mott at tracy.mott@dallasopera.org.
ABOUT THE DALLAS ZOO
The Dallas Zoo is dedicated to creating a better world for animals. Named one of the nation’s Top 10 Zoos by USA Today, it is the largest zoological experience in Texas. The zoo has been accredited continuously by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums since 1985, and features a 106-acre park, thousands of animals, and an education department that offers programs for all ages. The zoo is located at 650 S. R.L. Thornton Freeway (I-35 at Marsalis) and is open 364 days a year. For more information, visit DallasZoo.com or call 469.554.7500.
ABOUT THE DALLAS OPERA
One of the leading opera companies in the country, The Dallas Opera has an extraordinary legacy of world-class productions and thrilling premieres featuring the greatest operatic artists of our time. Inaugurated in 1957 with a concert featuring the incomparable Maria Callas, TDO is known for the notable U.S. debuts of a host of legendary artists including Plácido Domingo, Dame Joan Sutherland, Jon Vickers, Franco Zeffirelli, and Sir David McVicar. The company has long been an industry leader and innovator through groundbreaking initiatives like the Hart Institute for Women Conductors, free public simulcasts, acclaimed art song recitals, the national vocal competition, special concerts, and outstanding family and award-winning education programs. TDO’s home is the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House, a jewel in the Dallas Arts District. As one of the largest performing arts employers in North Texas, TDO is proudly committed to diversity, onstage and off, and is a major contributor to the economic vitality and international cultural reputation of this region.
2019-2020 SEASON SPONSOR
The Nancy A. Nasher and David J. Haemisegger Family
EVENTS, GUESTS AND ARTISTS SUBJECT TO CHANGE
The Dallas Opera is supported, in part, by funds from: Elsa von Seggern Foundation;
Texas Instruments; the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture;
The Texas Commission on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).
American Airlines is the official airline of The Dallas Opera.
Lexus is the official vehicle of The Dallas Opera.
Advertising support from The Dallas Morning News.
All performances in The Dallas Opera’s 63rd International Season will take place in the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House at the AT&T Performing Arts Center, unless otherwise indicated. Evening performances will begin at 7:30 p.m. (Opening Night of The Magic Flute begins at 8 p.m.) and Sunday matinees start at 2:00 p.m. unless otherwise stated. English translations will be projected above the stage at every performance and assistance is available for the hearing impaired.
The Joy and Ronald Mankoff Pre-Opera Talk will begin one hour prior to curtain at most performances. Full and Flex subscriptions are designed to meet the needs of every budget. Prices range from just $57 (for three performances of your choice) to a top orchestra floor price of $777 for all five mainstage productions. Single tickets are priced from $25 to $289 (a few box seats may be higher). For additional information or to make your purchase, call 214.443.1000 or visit www.dallasopera.org.
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