Wichita Grand Opera
Century II Concert Hall
225 W. Douglas Ave.
Wichita , Kansas 67202
316.683.3444 Admin Office
316.262.8054 Box Office

Young People's Performances

Attend Opera Dress Rehearsals for FREE!
Attend Ballet performances at reduced prices!

NOTE: WGO issues tickets for all performances to ensure that each person has a seat; they will be issued on a first-come-first-served basis. Beginning December 1, 2011, interested schools and homeschool organizations may submit order forms for complimentary tickets following the instructions given below.

Available 2011-2012 Performances:

Il Trovatore (The Troubador) by Giuseppe Verdi Thursday, February 2, 2012, 7:00pm Century II Concert Hall	This is an orchestra dress rehearsal closed to the general public. Young people will have the opportunity to see the final dress rehearsal of Verdi’s greatest masterpiece. English translations will be projected above the stage to help them follow the story. All ticket order forms for this performance must be received by the WGO no later than Wednesday, February 1, 2012.
	TEACHING TIP: In addition to the love triangle and personal rivalries between the Troubador Manrico, the Count di Luna, and the girl Leonora, Il Trovatore centers on themes of civil war, persecution of ethnic groups (the gypsies), and revenge.

Die Fledermaus (The Bat) by Johann Strauss, Jr. Thursday, March 15, 2012, 7:00pm Century II Concert Hall	This is an orchestra dress rehearsal closed to the general public. Young people will have the opportunity to see the final dress rehearsal of one of the most popular operettas ever written. The production will be performed entirely in English. All ticket order forms for this performance must be received by the WGO no later than Wednesday, March 14, 2012.
	TEACHING TIP: Aside from the major plot points of “getting even” with a friend for a practical joke, the comedy in Die Fledermaus is based in upending traditional class structures in 19th Century Europe.

Don Pasquale by Gaetano Donizetti Thursday, April 19, 2012, 7:00pm Century II Mary Jane Teall Theater	This is an orchestra dress rehearsal closed to the general public. Young people will have the opportunity to see the final dress rehearsal of an Italian comedy masterpiece. The production will be updated, staged in the 1950s, performed entirely in English. All ticket order forms for this performance must be received by the WGO no later than Wednesday, March 14, 2012.
	TEACHING TIP: Don Pasquale can lead to discussions of the feminist movement, as it is an excellent – and funny – example of a strong female character (Norina) refusing to allow the male characters to make decisions for her.

Giselle Moscow Festival Ballet Wednesday, May 2, 2012, 7:00pm Century II Concert Hall	This is a live performance open to the general public. Young people will have the opportunity to enjoy a grand classical ballet performed to recorded music by superbly trained Russian ballet dancers, in an engaging fantasy story. Few American ballet companies perform ballet on this scale due to the large numbers of talented dancers required in the cast. Tickets for young people and their chaperones cost $15 per person (regular price is $35), based on availability. Since this performance is open to the public, we ask that participating schools and organizations provide more chaperones – one per every five students – for this performance. Participating schools and organizations are responsible to collect the ticket fees and submit an order form and one check to the WGO no later than April 30, 2012. Upon receipt of payment, WGO will issue tickets to the school’s designated group leader.

FOR TICKETS:

Send a Ticket Order Form to the WGO Box Office, including:

Name, address, and telephone number of the school group’s primary contact person

Name, address, and telephone number of the School or Homeschooling Organization.

List of all students with their assigned chaperones, including students names, ages, and grades.

The title of the production(s) the school group would like to attend.

A check made out to the WGO for the total ticket amount, if the group wishes to attend Giselle.

Box Office Manager
Wichita Grand Opera
225 W. Douglas
Wichita, KS 67202
Email: marketing@wichitagrandopera.org, Fax: 316.263.2126

Upon receipt of the above information and payment (if needed), the WGO will issue tickets to the school’s designated group leader. WGO's Box Office Manager will notify the school or group leader when the tickets are available for pick-up at the WGO office. Tickets may not be picked up the day of the Dress Rehearsal or performance.

Transportation, Chaperones, Protocol, and Arrival

Each participating school or organization is responsible for transportation to and from Century II.

A maximum of one chaperone per each seven students will be permitted to accompany the young people to ensure their safety and polite behavior.

For open to the public Ballet performances, we ask that groups provide one chaperone per each FIVE students.

The young people should be instructed on expected “performance protocol” prior to arriving at Century II.

Groups may arrive as early as 6:15pm. Each young person will need to have their own ticket in-hand to give to the ticket takers. Ushers will lead the groups to their seats.

Groups should arrive early enough to ensure that the young people are in their seats no later than 6:50pm, at which time a WGO spokesperson will greet them with a brief welcome.

Latecomers will be seated at the ushers’ discretion once the rehearsal or performance begins. In some situations, late seating may not be possible.

About the Program

Wichita Grand Opera’s Young People’s Opera Education Program was established in 2008 for the benefit and education of young people between the ages of 8 and 18 to introduce them to fully-staged, live productions of opera and ballet. Students at participating schools and homeschooling organizations are admitted free of charge to designated dress rehearsals of certain opera productions throughout the season, and have the opportunity to purchase reduced-price tickets for ballet performances. We ask that participating groups provide their own chaperones – who are also admitted free of charge – in numbers appropriate to the ages of the children in the group, but for space reasons we ask that there not be more than one chaperone per seven children. There is no limit to the number of productions groups may attend during the season.