Opera Grows in Brooklyn is an ongoing collaboration between American Opera Projects, "known for bringing cutting-edge vocal production to the masses," (
New York), and Opera on Tap, "...raucous and sublime...un-elitist, imperfect, and fun..." (
NY Sun), that presents three 30-minute selections of songs and scenes from contemporary composers in a hip, cabaret-style atmosphere. Audiences have a chance to meet the artists and composers after the performance.
Opera Grows in Brooklyn has been called "an exciting new level of work for these young companies. Brooklyn and the rest of the city will benefit from future collaborations like these." (The Curator, April 2009).
Parterrebox:
“…it seems clear that the Brooklyn hipster is destined to be the next audience for opera…once again some amazing surprises were presented by this rag-tag bunch of very experimental artists. …the old and new guard of opera viewers mingled in an open-minded night of musical experimentation.” (July 2010)
The Opera Insider:
“I for one do not intend to miss another installment of this remarkable series!!!” …the eclectic and sometimes challenging musical offerings [are] beautifully framed by the contemporary space and the relaxed, social atmosphere.” (July 2010)
Parterrebox also commented, "Galapagos was quite an interesting place to see an event like this. I personally think this type of venue is a great place for workshopping new works; those in the audience were young and seemingly very supportive of the performances.
What I kept thinking about though, was the Lower East Side of Manhattan in the ’60s, where visionaries like Philip Glass would play in spacious lofts simply because they could. ... I think this is as close as the opera world will get to that type of experimental sharing as was seen all those years ago. ... I would certainly go again to a presentation like this. You never really know if you’ll be there for the premiere of the next great masterwork by the next great composer, and if you aren’t, well, the beer is still cold." (April 2010)
"Galapagos is about to become New York City's first LEED-certified, "green" cultural building. Director Robert Elmes is adding opera to a space known best for its Obie Award winning, progressive programming," says AOP General Director Charles Jarden. "We think it's not just cool for opera to be in a spectacular space like Galapagos, it's essential for creating new music that connects to audiences. Opera away from opera houses is the best way for the genre to thrive and grow. It is economically smart and creatively daring and the voices sound great to both new listeners and fans. If one audience member walks out with an interest in discovering music by living composers, we'll know we are on the right track."
Galapagos Art Space, Brooklyn
www.galapagosartspace.com
16 Main Street (corner of Water St.)
Brooklyn, NY
DIRECTIONS
SAVE THE DATE FOR THE NEXT "OPERA GROWS IN BROOKLYN":
Friday, October 15, 2010 - 8:00 p.m.
Friday, December 10, 2010 - 8:00 p.m.
