Selections from CARMEN, 'SERAGLIO', THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE, and More Set for Madison Opera's Opera in the Park 2017 Series

Madison Opera's Opera in the Park celebrates its sixteenth year on Saturday, July 22 at 8pm in Garner Park on Madison's West Side. The annual free concert of opera and Broadway favorites closes the company's 2016/17 season and provides an enticing preview of the 2017/18 season.

A Madison summer tradition that often attracts over 15,000 people, Opera in the Park is an enchanting evening of music under the stars, featuring selections from opera and Broadway. Opera in the Park 2017 features soprano Cecilia Violetta López, mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala, tenor David Walton, and baritone Will Liverman. They are joined by the Madison Opera Chorus and Madison Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Joseph Mechavich. The evening is hosted by Madison Opera's General Director Kathryn Smith and WKOW TV's 27 News Wake-Up Wisconsin anchor BranDon Taylor.

"Opera in the Park is the greatest performance in Madison Opera's season," says Smith. "When so many people come together under a beautiful summer sky and enjoy the same live experience of gorgeous opera, it encapsulates the power of music to connect people in a celebratory way. I am grateful to all of our supporters who share our belief in the community-building power of music and help us produce this concert every summer."

Opera in the Park 2017 features arias and ensembles from Bizet's Carmen, which opens the 2017/18 season in November; Mozart's The Abduction from the Seraglio, which will be performed in February; and Catán's Florencia en el Amazonas, which will be performed in April. The program also includes two zarzuela selections, from María la O and El Barbero de Sevilla. Selections from Rigoletto, Lakmé, The Daughter of the Regiment, West Side Story, Into the Woods, The Pirates of Penzance, and more round out this spectacular evening, which always includes one number conducted by the audience with light sticks.

Garner Park is located at 333 S. Rosa Road. Parking is available in the CUNA Mutual Group and University Research Park lots. Attendees are encouraged to bring picnics, blankets, and chairs. Alcohol is permitted but not sold in the park. On the day of the concert, Garner Park will open at 7am. Audience members may not leave items in the park prior to this time. The rain date for Opera in the Park is Sunday, July 23 at 8pm.

While Opera in the Park is free to attend, it would not be possible without the generous support of many foundations, corporations, and individuals who believe in the importance of music in the community. Madison Opera is grateful to the sponsors of Opera in the Park 2017: the Berbeewalsh Foundation, the John and Carolyn Peterson Charitable Foundation, Full Compass Systems, CUNA Mutual Group, the Raymond B. Preston Family Foundation, BMO Harris Bank, University Research Park, Colony Brands, the Evjue Foundation, the MGE Foundation, Starion Bank, National Guardian Life, Wisconsin Bank & Trust, the Wisconsin Arts Board, Dane Arts, and the Madison Arts Commission. WKOW, Isthmus, Madison Magazine, Wisconsin Public Radio, Magic 98, and La Movida are media sponsors for this community event.

More information is available at www.madisonopera.org.