Boca Ciega High Grad Returns as Opera Star In St. Petersburg Opera 4/10

St. Petersburg Opera's popular Evenings with the Maestro series is featuring Boca Ciega High and USF graduate Ronnita Miller in Opera's Greatest Hits: Ten Perfect Tens. A native of St. Petersburg, Miller received a master's degree in voice from Manhattan School of Music, studied at Juilliard, and has participated in several highly acclaimed young artist programs, including the Merola program in San Francisco and the Domingo-Thornton Young Artist program in Los Angeles. A mezzo-soprano, she has been extensively booked in Los Angeles and San Francisco and has made numerous New York appearances.

The program will also feature soprano Phoenix Gayles, tenor Bryce Westervelt and baritone Joseph Ryan. Sarah Shellman, violin, and Maestro Mark Sforzini, bassoon will join Teresa Rose at the piano in providing musical accompaniment. Shellman will perform the beautiful "Meditation" from the opera Thais by Massenet. Sforzini has selected ten outstanding arias and will explain why we love them.

Evenings with the Maestro is presented at the Music Gallery, 5990 Ulmerton Road, Clearwater, at 6:00 p.m. on April 7, 2011. Each of these first Thursday of the month lectures addresses a different theme to enhance your understanding of opera and of music in general and lasts approximately 90 minutes. Following the program, the audience is invited to join the Maestro and the cast for conversation and refreshments at a local restaurant. Tickets to the Music Gallery presentation are $15 ($10 seniors and $8 students) and are available in advance on the St. Petersburg opera website, www.stpeteopera.org or by calling the office at 727-823-2040. Tickets are also available at the door.

The program will be repeated on Sunday, April 10 at Sun City Center Community Hall, 1910 S. Pebble Beach Blvd., Sun City Center at 2:00 p.m.

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