The Metropolitan Opera Guild
Encyclopedia
The Metropolitan Opera Guild was established in 1935 to broaden the base of support for the Metropolitan Opera
, promote greater interest in opera
, and develop future audiences by reaching out to a wide public and serving as an educational resource that provides programs, publications, materials and services to schools, families, individuals, and community groups nationwide.
The Guild was the brainchild of Eleanor Robson Belmont
a retired actress and the first female member of the board of directors of the Metropolitan Opera. She believed opera truly belong to the people, and wished to provide them with more ways to connect to and enjoy the art form. In 75 years, the Guild has contributed more than $245 million to the Met (figure adjusted for inflation). The Guild provides programs and services in many areas designed to further these goals.
magazine and presenting special events season.
The Guild’s Education Department provides an innovative network of music and arts education programs to hundreds schools and communities worldwide. These programs include rehearsals and performances at the Metropolitan Opera, family education programs to introduce children to opera, a community lecture series, master classes, interviews with opera professionals, production panels, a volunteer program, school residency programs, professional development courses for teachers, and collaborations with colleges and universities throughout the country.
Opera News, the monthly magazine published by the Guild, reports on opera around the world. Each issue includes reviews of commercial recordings and live performances, profiles of artists, and articles by eminent writers on the music scene. During the Saturday afternoon Met broadcast season, the magazine also includes an in-depth guide to both radio and HD broadcasts. With a circulation of over 100,000, it is the world’s largest-circulation magazine devoted to opera. Opera News also maintains an active web site at http://www.operanews.com.
The Guild produces an annual series of public programs in major New York City venues both to celebrate the art and artists of opera, these includes the Annual Guild Luncheon and the Opera News Awards.
Community Programs form the bridge across the footlights, bringing you nearer to opera, taking you backstage, offering insight and opportunities to explore the allied arts of opera. The Guild Community Programs include Lecture events, backstage tours, Opera Explorers Workshops, Score Desk seating at the opera, and overseeing the Guild's volunteer corps.Community Programs' vision is to create community, stimulate conversation, and open up opportunities that empower individuals to further explore an underlying shared interest in opera
Lectures at the Guild include lecture, master class, seminar and interview events, as well as the Met Talks -group interviews and discussions with cast and artistic crew of an opera production. The lecture events are presented by expert as well as accessible individuals ranging from professional critics and journalists, to opera conductors, directors and designers, scholars and professors, singer and vocal coaches. The lectures aim to empower audiences to explore their interest in opera.
In Opera Explorers workshops young children (aged 5–8) discover the operatic arts with their families through these innovative and interactive workshops.
By combining musical and historical background with hands-on experiential learning and physical and vocal activity, workshop participants learn to recognize characters by sight and sound, follow a complex operatic plot, and understand the power of music, acting, and design to tell a story. Its impact will be felt over years as children grow and become new opera lovers or, perhaps, are inspired to pursue their own dreams of performance.
A well-loved New York City past time for natives and tourists alike, the Backstage Tours of the Met Opera House offer a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the Met, including the expansive scenic and carpentry shops where sets are built and painted; the costume, wardrobe, make-up, and wig departments that prep and primp today’s star singers for the stage; rehearsal rooms where productions first take shape; the massive stage complex where the action comes to life; and the crown jewel auditorium.
Tours are held during the Met performance season on most weekdays at 3:00 PM, and most Sundays at 10:30 AM and 1:30 PM.
Score-desk seats are located in the Family Circle Boxes of the Metropolitan Opera House. These special seats offer no view of the stage, but are equipped with a desk and reading light, enabling study of an opera’s score during the performance.
The Guild believes opera is essential to well-rounded learning and teaching. It created Opera-Based Learning as an instructional approach using the components of opera (music composition, libretto writing, acting, singing, literary analysis, staging, and critical response) as an integral part of teaching and learning. Opera-Based Learning includes opportunities for students to create, present, and attend opera.
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
, promote greater interest in opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
, and develop future audiences by reaching out to a wide public and serving as an educational resource that provides programs, publications, materials and services to schools, families, individuals, and community groups nationwide.
The Guild was the brainchild of Eleanor Robson Belmont
Eleanor Robson Belmont
Eleanor Robson Belmont was an English actress and prominent public figure in the United States. George Bernard Shaw wrote Major Barbara for her, but contractual problems prevented her from playing the role. Mrs...
a retired actress and the first female member of the board of directors of the Metropolitan Opera. She believed opera truly belong to the people, and wished to provide them with more ways to connect to and enjoy the art form. In 75 years, the Guild has contributed more than $245 million to the Met (figure adjusted for inflation). The Guild provides programs and services in many areas designed to further these goals.
Guild Activities
The Guild pursues its mission through a variety of educational outreach programs, publishing Opera NewsOpera News
Opera News is an American classical music magazine. It has been published since 1936 by the Metropolitan Opera Guild, a non-profit organization located at Lincoln Center which was founded to support the Metropolitan Opera of New York City...
magazine and presenting special events season.
The Guild’s Education Department provides an innovative network of music and arts education programs to hundreds schools and communities worldwide. These programs include rehearsals and performances at the Metropolitan Opera, family education programs to introduce children to opera, a community lecture series, master classes, interviews with opera professionals, production panels, a volunteer program, school residency programs, professional development courses for teachers, and collaborations with colleges and universities throughout the country.
Opera News, the monthly magazine published by the Guild, reports on opera around the world. Each issue includes reviews of commercial recordings and live performances, profiles of artists, and articles by eminent writers on the music scene. During the Saturday afternoon Met broadcast season, the magazine also includes an in-depth guide to both radio and HD broadcasts. With a circulation of over 100,000, it is the world’s largest-circulation magazine devoted to opera. Opera News also maintains an active web site at http://www.operanews.com.
The Guild produces an annual series of public programs in major New York City venues both to celebrate the art and artists of opera, these includes the Annual Guild Luncheon and the Opera News Awards.
Community Programs
Since its founding, the Metropolitan Opera Guild has continuously worked to foster a stimulated and educated community connecting the drama on the stage to the last person in the Family Circle, to the remote member of the radio and HD audience.Community Programs form the bridge across the footlights, bringing you nearer to opera, taking you backstage, offering insight and opportunities to explore the allied arts of opera. The Guild Community Programs include Lecture events, backstage tours, Opera Explorers Workshops, Score Desk seating at the opera, and overseeing the Guild's volunteer corps.Community Programs' vision is to create community, stimulate conversation, and open up opportunities that empower individuals to further explore an underlying shared interest in opera
Lectures at the Guild include lecture, master class, seminar and interview events, as well as the Met Talks -group interviews and discussions with cast and artistic crew of an opera production. The lecture events are presented by expert as well as accessible individuals ranging from professional critics and journalists, to opera conductors, directors and designers, scholars and professors, singer and vocal coaches. The lectures aim to empower audiences to explore their interest in opera.
In Opera Explorers workshops young children (aged 5–8) discover the operatic arts with their families through these innovative and interactive workshops.
By combining musical and historical background with hands-on experiential learning and physical and vocal activity, workshop participants learn to recognize characters by sight and sound, follow a complex operatic plot, and understand the power of music, acting, and design to tell a story. Its impact will be felt over years as children grow and become new opera lovers or, perhaps, are inspired to pursue their own dreams of performance.
A well-loved New York City past time for natives and tourists alike, the Backstage Tours of the Met Opera House offer a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the Met, including the expansive scenic and carpentry shops where sets are built and painted; the costume, wardrobe, make-up, and wig departments that prep and primp today’s star singers for the stage; rehearsal rooms where productions first take shape; the massive stage complex where the action comes to life; and the crown jewel auditorium.
Tours are held during the Met performance season on most weekdays at 3:00 PM, and most Sundays at 10:30 AM and 1:30 PM.
Score-desk seats are located in the Family Circle Boxes of the Metropolitan Opera House. These special seats offer no view of the stage, but are equipped with a desk and reading light, enabling study of an opera’s score during the performance.
School Partnerships
The Metropolitan Opera and the Metropolitan Opera Guild are committed to finding and fostering the next generation of opera lovers through vital programs in schools and communities across the country and advancing the role of opera in education. The Guild's education initiatives reach more than 1,600 schools in 20 states. School Partnerships include the Access Opera program, Urban Voices choruses, vocal mentorships and professional development for teachers.The Guild believes opera is essential to well-rounded learning and teaching. It created Opera-Based Learning as an instructional approach using the components of opera (music composition, libretto writing, acting, singing, literary analysis, staging, and critical response) as an integral part of teaching and learning. Opera-Based Learning includes opportunities for students to create, present, and attend opera.
Guild Membership
The Guild provides economically accessible forms of membership to opera lovers and classical music enthusiasts. Guild membership encompasses seven tiers of giving levels, with benefits including Opera News subscription, priority purchase period, discounts and access to the Belmont Room in the Metropolitan Opera House. Guild membership fees go to support the activities of The Metropolitan Opera, and ranges between $5–6 million in recent years.External links
- http://www.metguild.org, Met Opera Guild website
- http://www.metoperafamily.org, Metropolitan Opera website
- http://www.fsz.bme.hu/opera/other.html, Opera Related links
- http://www.aria-database.com/, The Aria Databse