Chairs Announced for Dallas Opera's FIRST SIGHT/NIGHT

The Dallas Opera has announced that Ellen and Don Winspear have accepted the appointments as Chairs of FIRST SIGHT/FIRST NIGHT to head up the dazzling 60th Season kick-off celebrations. Honorary Chairs are Joyce and Harvey Mitchell.

The Dallas Opera's 2016-2017 Season begins with the captivating FIRST SIGHT Fashion Show and Luncheon, NorthPark Center presenting sponsor, on Thursday,

October 27, 2016 at 11:00 a.m. In an outstanding pairing of two world-class companies, The Dallas Opera will present fashions by Italian luxury brand Versace.

Red carpet glamour welcomes patrons to FIRST NIGHT, Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management presenting sponsor. Sammons Park in front of the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House is the setting for the splendid Pre-Performance Dinner, Friday, October 28, 2016 beginning at 5:30 p.m with a reception. The event will also showcase spectacular opera costumes from previous productions.

The black-tie fete continues with a scrumptious dinner by Wolfgang Puck Catering which begins at 6:00 p.m. in the Sammons Park tent. It precedes the Linda and Mitch Hart Season Opening Night Performance of Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin at 8:00 p.m. (note the curtain time). Immediately following the performance, opera-goers will flow into the FIRST NIGHT After Party where The Hunter Sullivan Band will provide the party tunes for patrons, and Puck will provide a variety of themed palate pleasers. The Winspear Opera House is located at 2403 Flora Street, Dallas, TX, 75201. For more information or to purchase tickets, please visit: http://dallasopera.org/first-night/.

"We are honored to chair the opening events for The Dallas Opera's 60th Season! Our hope is that we have created a weekend of festivities that people will cherish and remember," said Mrs. Winspear.

"The 60th Season of The Dallas Opera is a remarkable milestone. Most exciting is that the company is setting industry standards for its innovation, production quality and community engagement. The season opening will celebrate all that we have accomplished so far with anticipation of the many magnificent productions to come," added Mr. Winspear.

"We are so grateful for the continued leadership and enthusiasm of Ellen and Don Winspear and are thrilled that they are heading up the exciting events for our 60th Season kick-off!" said Dallas Opera General Director and CEO Keith Cerny. "We know our patrons will love the festivities they have planned and we invite opera newcomers and aficionados alike to join us as we celebrate decades of success of The Dallas Opera. Our organization depends on the ongoing support of wonderful philanthropists such as Ellen and Don, and we salute their dedication and generosity."

Ellen Winspear is a native of Dallas who graduated from the Hockaday School. Following her undergraduate degree at Texas Christian University, she completed her graduate education at Southern Methodist University as a Certified Academic Language Therapist. She has many interests ranging from the arts and animals to education. She either has served or currently serves on the Board of Directors of The Dallas Opera, the Dallas Zoo, and the Annette Simmons School of Education at SMU. She has been married to Don for nearly 35 years and they have two sons. The younger son is a newlywed who graduated from the United States Merchant Marine Academy and is a maritime engineer in Lafayette, Louisiana. Their older son serves in the United States Army at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, where he lives with his wife.

Donald Winspear is president of Crescent Research, Inc., a full service market research company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Crescent conducts strategic marketing research for a variety of different companies across multiple industry sectors, including many Fortune 100 companies. He is currently on the Board of The Dallas Opera having previously served as Chairman of the Board of Directors. He also serves on TDO's Executive Committee and Finance Committee. Mr. Winspear has also served as a committee member on the Board of Directors of The Dallas Opera Foundation. He has served on the Board of Directors for the AT&T Performing Arts Center and currently serves on both the Executive Committee and Programming Committee. Mr. Winspear has lectured at both the undergraduate and graduate levels at area universities on the topics of marketing research and entrepreneurialism.

In addition to his role at Crescent Research, he is active with the Boy Scouts of America and a former Scoutmaster of Troop 577. Mr. Winspear has also held a number of leadership roles with his church, St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Dallas, including the Board of Directors of the church foundation.

Photo Credit: Kristina Bowman