Michigan Opera Theatre’s opera education programs aim to train future performers and current performers in creativity, movement, voice and more!
Opera Workshop
JULY 22 - AUGUST 4
OPERA WORKSHOP
Opera Workshop is an intensive two-week program designed for advanced singers with a goal of honing their vocal and acting skills. This unique program with a relaxed, yet professional atmosphere is located in the historic Detroit Opera House. Final staged performances of opera scenes are presented on the Opera House main stage. Students also participate in master classes with distinguished voice professors and internationally renowned conductors.
Opera Workshop offers a wide variety of classes, including:
- Recitative class
- Movement classes
- Instruction in stage makeup and stage combat
- Foreign language diction
- Seminars and master classes with international artists
- Fully staged and costumed opera scenes
Meets
Monday – Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Performances
Recital: Wednesday, July 31 at 7:00 p.m. (Boll Hall)
Final Performance: Sunday, August 4 at 3:00 p.m. (Main Stage)
Ages
College Students (advanced high school students may be considered)
Fee
Full day: $1000
Half day: $500
Deadline to Apply: May 1, 2013
Application
Download application form (PDF) (right-click and “Save As”)
Send to
Send completed registration form, a recording (CD or DVD), and a $100 deposit to:
Alaina Brown, Director – Opera Workshop
Learning at the Opera House
Michigan Opera Theatre
1526 Broadway
Detroit, MI 48226
For more information call the LATOH hotline: (313) 237-3270.
OPERETTA WORKSHOP
JULY 8-26
OPERETTA WORKSHOP
Operetta Workshop is a three-week day camp for young people from ages 12 to 18 to learn acting, singing and dancing, as well as healthy voice care. Participants will learn and perform Gilbert and Sullivan's operetta Patience on the Detroit Opera House main stage. The final production will be fully staged and costumed, allowing for a very special experience for young performers!
Directed by John Hopkins, with instructor Lara Semetko and accompanist Joseph Jackson.
Prerequisites
No previous experience necessary.
No audition required.
Ages
12 through high school
Meets
Monday – Friday, July 8 – 26, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. each day
Performance: July 26 at 6:00 p.m. (Main Stage)
Fee
$425
Enrollment subject to availability.
(Note: One "seat" equals one student registration.)
For more information call the LATOH hotline: (313) 237-3270.
JUNIOR OPERETTA WORKSHOP
Dates to TBA
JUNIOR OPERETTA WORKSHOP *NEW FOR 2013*
Directed by Duncan Burns
Junior Operetta Workshop is a new Learning at the Opera House 2013 class for students, ages 10-13. This two-week theatrical experience will immerse work-shoppers in music, drama, and dance, culminating in a final performance of an abridged version of the Gilbert & Sullivan operetta classic, The Pirates of Penzance.
Prerequisites
No previous experience necessary
Ages
10-13
Meets
Mon-Fri, June 24 - July 6, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Performance: Saturday, July 6 (time TBD)
Fee
$300
(Note: One "seat" equals one student registration.)
* Junior Operetta Workshop is subject to cancellation if the minimum number of students are not enrolled.
For more information call the LATOH hotline: (313) 237-3270.
Create and Perform
JUNE 24 - JULY 5
CREATE AND PERFORM
Instructor: Karen V. DiChiera, Director of Community Programs; Educator and Composer
Young (ages 12-18) composers and performers are invited to create music and theatrical works.
Prerequisites
No previous experience necessary
Ages
10-18
Meets
Mon-Fri, June 24 – July 5, 10 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Performance: Friday, July 5, 4:00 p.m.
Fee
$225
Enrollment subject to availability.
(Note: One "seat" equals one student enrollment.)
For more information call the LATOH hotline: (313) 237-3270.
Lens on the City
JULY 29-31
LENS ON THE CITY
Lens on the City is a three-day inter-generational learning experience. Families or groups of adults and children (8 years to 108 years!), will experience exclusive photo tours of downtown Detroit. Budding photographers will also receive instruction on photography basics from a professional photographer. Children under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult. Students must bring their own cameras.
Prerequisites
Must have a camera
Age
8 to adult
Meets
July 29, 30, & 31, 2013, from 9:45 AM to 1:00 PM.
Fee
$60 for three sessions
(Note: One "seat" equals one student registration.)
For more information call the LATOH hotline: (313) 237-3270.
Private Lessons
PRIVATE LESSONS
Michigan Opera Theatre offers private music lessons year round, for beginners and beyond, in voice (all genres), piano, and composition.
Voice and Music Staff
Karen VanderKloot DiChiera, piano, composition, singing
313-237-3406
kvd@motopera.org
About Karen V. DiChiera
Karen V. DiChiera is an educator and composer who created the Department of Community Programs at Michigan Opera Theatre. More recently, she created Learning at the Opera House at the Detroit Opera House. When Michigan Opera Theatre founder and director Dr. David DiChiera took over the running of the Dayton Opera Company in Ohio and Opera Pacific in Orange County California, Ms. DiChiera also created programs on the American Disability Act at Dayton Opera and created the Department of Community Programs for Opera Pacific.
Ms. DiChiera is a popular lecturer on many topics including opera, fairy tales and legends, Detroit and Michigan history, women composers, education, disabilities, opera composers and many other topics.
Learning at the Opera House was awarded the Education Success Award by Opera America, the service organization for opera companies in North America. Many other awards have been given to Michigan Opera Theatre’s Department of Community Programs. Ms. DiChiera is the second recipient of the Michigan Governor’s Arts Award in Education.
Candace de Lattre, voice technician, opera
810-287-0236
cdelattre@motopera.org
About Candace de Lattre
Candace de Lattre, Mezzo-contralto, received her Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Pedagogy and Performance and her Master of Music degree in Vocal Performance from Michigan State University, where she studied with Leona Scheunemann Witter. She received her Specialist in Music, Voice, from the University of Michigan, studying with George Shirley, Katherine Hilgenberg, Eckart Sellheim, and Eugene Bossart. Ms. de Lattre continued her postgraduate studies in New York, Toronto, and Graz, Austria, studying with Martin Rich, Edwin McArthur, Ernesto Barbini, Robert Spillman, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Walter Legge, John Wustman, Robert Evans, Sheila Harms, Maureen Forrester, Nico Castel, Chloe Owen, and Irma Cooper.
Betty Lane, singing voice specialist, vocal health educator
313-237-3238
blane@motopera.org
About Betty Lane
As a Singing Voice Specialist and Vocal Health Educator, Betty Lane is particularly interested in matters of vocal wellness, preventative care, vocal production and preservation of both the singing and speaking voice. Her personal area of research, development and expertise is that of working with abused and misused voices, with a special concentration on the non-classical voice user. Her work in these areas has been supported by a mini-fellowship from Dr. Robert T. Sataloff, MD, DMA/Otolaryngologist, Chairman of the Voice Foundation and Director of the American Institute for Voice and Ear Research in Philadelphia, where under his direct supervision, she trained as a Singing Voice Specialist, learning to utilize singing techniques as an alternative tool for vocally troubled and injured singers as well as speakers.
Trish Shandor, voice 911
586-872-0445
teeshandor@hotmail.com
Voice 911
About Voice 911
The Voice 911 program is vocal learning customized to the specific needs of the student, including proper breath control and support, eliminating vocal strain, expanding a limited range, hitting high notes, understanding pitch, tone, melody and functional harmony, eliminating breaks between registers, understanding the connection between your voice and your body. The program also emphasizes performance techniques and handling anxiety. After Voice 911 training, student’s voices and performances should feel effortless and free, powerful, controlled, and without fatigue.
Get on the schedule today! For more information call (586) 872-0445
Opera Talks
Michigan Opera Theatre offers free opera and dance talks one hour prior to each performance. Noted experts provide background and important information on what you will see on stage, enhancing your performance experience!
Opera Talks, hosted by the ever-popular Dr. Wallace Peace, are held one hour prior to each performance. Be sure to get to the opera house early to take advantage of this insightful preview of what’s to come on stage. With his blend of humor and wit, Dr. Peace’s Opera Talks are entertaining and not-to-be-missed! Opera plots can be complicated and sometimes confusing to new opera-goers. Opera Talks with Dr. Peace will be an insightful and entertaining overview for new opera-goers as well as opera regulars.
Don’t miss this free opportunity to further enhance your experience at the Detroit Opera House!
