Nashville Opera Presents 'Opera on the Mountain' 5/15

Nashville Opera and Vanderbilt Dyer Observatory present an evening of operatic music and star-gazing on May 15. Guests are encouraged to bring a picnic basket filled with their favorite foods and beverages which can be enjoyed during a special outdoor concert on the grounds of the observatory. At the conclusion of the opera program guests will have an opportunity to view stars in the evening sky through the Seyfert Telescope (weather permitting). The event offers three different price levels: $20 for a reserved seat, $25 for a table seat (perfect for picnic dinners), and $100 for the Patron Level which also includes additional vocal offerings and star-gazing from the roof of the observatory after the concert. Tickets must be purchased prior to the event from Nashville Opera at (615) 832-5242 or online at www.nashvilleopera.org. The price of admission also includes parking in the adjacent area next to the observatory. Doors open at 6pm and the concert will be performed from 7pm to 8pm in the Dyer Observatory's patio tent.

Baritone Jonathan Carle, mezzo-soprano Jennifer Coleman, soprano Mary Scheib, and pianist Jennifer McGuire will present selections from 'Rusalka,' 'Susannah,' 'I Puritani,' 'Tannhäuser,' 'Hérodiade,' 'The Mikado,' 'Street Scene,' and 'Rose-Marie.' The trio will also offer art songs from Reynaldo Hahn, Franz Schubert, Johannes Brahms, and Samuel Barber. Stuart Holt, Nashville Opera's Education Director, will serve as the master of ceremonies for Opera on the Mountain.

"'Opera on the Mountain' promises to be an eclectic program that captures the beauty of the heavens in song," says Stuart Holt. "The outdoor setting of the Dyer Observatory is an idyllic spot for a picnic and fantastic music."

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 play to over 17,000 people annually. Nashville Opera's extensive education and outreach touring program reaches over 30,000 students throughout Middle Tennessee. These projects are supported by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Tennessee Arts Commission, and the Metro Nashville Arts Commission.

Crowning one of Nashville's tallest peaks, Vanderbilt Dyer Observatory is a Tennessee treasure. Surrounded by scenic Radnor Lake State Park and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Dyer's telescopes have pointed toward the sky since 1953. Vanderbilt University has a long and respected tradition of astronomy. Their first Chancellor, Landon Garland, was a professor of Physics and Astronomy. Many of the University's original 1875 astronomical instruments and artifacts are housed at Dyer. Also proudly displayed among the historical items is the engraved pocket watch of the famous astronomer E.E. Barnard, presented to him for the discovery of the fifth moon of Jupiter. Galileo discovered the first four.