Nashville Opera ON TOUR Presents JACK AND THE BEANSTALK, Now thru 3/15

Nashville Opera ON TOUR will present John Davies' Jack and the Beanstalk, a traveling opera production featuring the five-person 2015 Mary Ragland Young Artist Program members. The work is directed by Nashville Opera's Director of Education and Outreach, Chandra McKern. This 40-minute operatic version of Jack and the Beanstalk is set to music of Gilbert and Sullivan and features Jack, his mother, and their cow, Snickers, the Giant, his wife, and the Trouble Man.

Watch a trailer for the show below!

Jack's mother instructs Jack to take Snickers to town and sell her for money to buy food. On the way to town, Jack meets a strange man called the Trouble Man. He tells Jack that anyone can put their troubles into his sack and he will never give them back. The Trouble Man decides that he will buy the old cow and pays Jack with five beans. Jack questions this form of payment but the Trouble Man convinces him that the beans are magic. When Jack tells his mother what he has done, she is very unhappy with him. Jack and his mom go to bed after she throws the beans into the backyard, and they awake to discover the beans have grown into a GIANT beanstalk! Jack decides to explore it and then sees the Giant. After he is discovered, Jack begs the Giant's wife for food, and she tells him to leave quickly as the Giant can smell him. Later, Jack then uses a disguise to fool the Giant into revealing his secret. All ends happily when the Giant sees the error of his ways and apologizes for being a bully. This opera teaches the timeless lesson of the "Golden Rule."

Nashville Opera ON TOUR will perform Jack and the Beanstalk over 80 times for nearly 25,000 students, teachers, and parents in more than 40 different schools throughout Middle Tennessee during its 6-week tour, which launches tonight, February 4.

In addition, Nashville Opera ON TOUR will offer several free performances which are open to the general public:

Saturday, February 7 at 2 pm: The Mary Ragland Young Artists will present OPERA OUT LOUD at The Parthenon (requires admission)

Saturday, February 14 at 10 am: Noah Liff Opera Center: Vanderbilt TRIAD performance - requires a reservation at (615) 832-5242

Saturday, February 14 at 3 pm: Linebaugh Library, Murfreesboro

Wednesday, February 18 at 10:30 am: OPERA OUT LOUD presentation for Fifty Forward, The Patricia Hart Building

Saturday, February 21 at 10 am: Country Music Hall of Fame

Saturday, February 21 at 2 pm: Edmonson Pike Public Library

Saturday, February 28 at 11 am: Brentwood Library

Saturday, February 28 at 2:30 pm: Williamson County Library

Saturday, February 28 at 4 pm: Williamson County Library

Saturday, March 7 at 10:30 am: Nashville Public Library

Saturday, March 14 at 10 am: Casa Azafran

Saturday, March 14 at 2 pm: Goodlettsville Library

Sunday, March 15 at 2 pm: Belle Meade Plantation

The 2015 Mary Ragland Young Artist Program (MRYAP) members are soprano Hanna Brammer as Jack's Mother, mezzo-soprano Christine Amon as the Giant's wife, tenor Christopher Nelson as Jack, bass-baritone Alex Soare as the Giant/Trouble Man, and Tour Music Director/Pianist Cory Battey.

About Nashville Opera - Nashville Opera, Tennessee's largest professional opera company, is dedicated to creating legendary productions and programs. Among the most successful regional companies in the United States of America, Nashville Opera has presented three different world premiere operas since its inception in 1981. Main stage performances are presented at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center and the Noah Liff Opera Center, playing to over 13,000 people annually. Nashville Opera's extensive education and outreach touring program reaches over 25,000 students throughout Middle Tennessee. These projects are supported by grants from the Metro Nashville Arts Commission, the Tennessee Arts Commission, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Judy and Noah Liff Foundation, the Nashville Opera Guild, and many other corporate and individual supporters.

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