Petite Opera presents a rare CINDERELLA Nov 2-17 in Park Ridge

This November, Chicago area residents are in for a rare treat!  From November 2-17, 2012, patrons have eight (8) opportunities to see Petite Opera's depiction of the classic story Cinderella in a version that has not been seen in Chicagoland for over 100 years.

Composed in 1899, Jules Massenet's version of Cinderella (Cendrillon) has all of the melodic beauty and lush harmonies of the late Romantic period, plus incredible depth of characters that truly bring the story to life.

How exactly is this version different?

We'll be exploring the differences between this and other versions in upcoming posts.  But to give you just a flavor, recently, Petite Opera's Executive Director, Director of Production and Stage Director for Cinderella sat down with Public Perspective cable show host, Kevin McDermott.  The group discussed what Petite Opera is all about, how the company selected this outstanding work by Massenet, possible reasons why it hasn't been performed in Chicagoland within the recent centennial, and the Director's vision of the show.

Hear the complete story and get insights on the production!  Click the link below to view the interview:

Public Perspective/video/Petite Opera Cinderella

                                                                                                                                           

Petite Opera performs Cinderella November 2-17, 2012 at Mary Wilson House Beyer Auditorium, part of St. Mary's Episcopal Church campus, 306 S Prospect Ave at Crescent Ave (enter on Crescent Ave), Park Ridge, IL.  Call 847-553-4442 to reserve tickets, or purchase tickets online via credit card (convenience charges apply to credit card orders).  Petite Opera is a professional 501c3 opera company.

What is Petite Opera Productions?

In 2007, three classically-trained vocalist comedians noticed several things about Chicago area opera performances: (1) most companies produced predominantly dramatic works where some poor soprano was destined to die; (2) the majority of opera patrons were devoted patrons, but few new people were being converted to opera lovers, especially youth; and (3) that many potential patrons thought opera was “stuffy and unapproachable”. The three performers had a dream: make opera approachable and fun, save opera heroines from certain death^TM through comic intervention, and convert a whole new generation to opera patrons. Together, they founded Petite Opera Productions, or “POP” for short. The company incorporated as an Illinois not-for-profit, and received its tax exempt 501(c)(3) designation in 2008.

Plans were made to produce several full-scale comic operas soon thereafter. Then the economic crisis struck, and immediate production plans were thrust onto the back burner. In place of a full-scale production, the founders began to conceive of a way to spread the news of their musical mirth through means of their own invention—a new art form they call “POPera Spooferetta”. To test the concept, a new original opera libretto was written, and set to music of the operatic masters. Premiering to two interested groups in June 2009, the opera received tremendous patron acclamations.

The group is launching its first official season on October 30, 2009 with the Spooferetta^TM “Al Fresco: Life Through Opera-Colored Glasses”.

Petite Opera Productions intends to carry on its mission by exposing grade school, middle school and high school youth to operas in a fun, friendly way, and likewise by reaching their parents and grandparents through fun, comic vocal music genre such as comic opera, operetta, and legitimate musical theatre, as well as our signature Spooferettas^TM. We do this by removing all possible barriers to enjoyment such as black tie venues, translation screens, and stories which require a history major to understand. Our performances are in intimate settings, in everyday English, and revolve around situations of today.

If you are interested in becoming a member of our board, production staff, or are interested in auditioning for the group as a performer or instrumentalist, please contact us at



Petite Opera Productions Executive Board
Susan Baushke, President
Janene Bergen, Secretary
Steven Arvanites, Treasurer

© 2009, copyright Petite Opera Productions