PHILADELPHIA (Opera North Website) - Opera North (formerly Opera Ebony/Philadelphia) will present famed soprano,
Indra Thomas, at the
Trinity Center for Urban Life, 22nd and Spruce Streets, Philadelphia, PA on Sunday May 16, 2004, at 4:00 p.m. A reception in Ms. Thomas' honor will immediately follow the performance.
Indra Thomas, a graduate of the Academy of Vocal Arts, Philadelphia, PA, was the 1998 winner of the Metropolitan Opera's National Council Auditions. As a result of the honor, Ms. Thomas was invited to join the Metropolitan Opera Company and made her debut in Spring 1999 as "High Priestess" in Aida. The same year Ms. Thomas made her debut at the Seattle Opera as "Fiordiligi" in Mozart's Cose fan tutte to critical acclaim. Ms. Thomas was the guest soloist in a Chanukah and Christmas Musical Gala with the Utica Symphony Orchestra.
In Fall, 2002 she returned to the Metropolitan Opera to sing "Liu" in Turandot, followed by her debut at the New York Philharmonic at its New Year's Eve Gala, 2002, hosted by Beverly Sills and televised on PBS' program, "Live from Lincoln Center". Ms. Thomas made her Carnegie Hall debut as soprano soloist in Verdi's Requiem with the New York Choral Society.
Indra Thomas first appeared under Opera North's auspices when she was a first year student at the Academy of Vocal Arts. She has sung "Elisabetta" in Don Carlos at the Minnesota Opera and the Boston Lyric Opera and captivated audiences as "Desdemona" in Verdi's Otello at the Cramoor Festival in 2001.
The past November 2003, she sang Aida at La Scala Milan on the 100th anniversary of the opera's premiere in the same opera house where it premiered, under the direction of Richardo Muti, former music director of the Philadelphia Orchestra. She will soon make her debut with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, following her appearance with the Atlanta Opera Company, both in the title role of Aida.
For tickets and further information contact Opera North at 215-848-9490 or 215-842-2544 or visit Opera North's website, https://www.operanorth.com. Tickets may also be purchased online at https://www.ticketweb.com or by calling 1-800-965-4827.
Opera North, founded in 1974, is an opera company whose mission is to broaden, deepen, and inspire African American cultural participation in opera through outreach programs that educate audiences about opera and by creating performance opportunities for African American artists.
For the past 30 years, Opera North has consistently presented grand opera, including La Boheme, Aida, Le Nozze de Figaro, La Traviata, and Il Trovatore, to name a few. Lasting credit is given to Sr. Mary Elise of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, and a founding member, who zealously sought to create previously denied performance opportunities for gifted African American vocal artists, musicians, conductors, designers, and stage directors. In addition to presenting an annual grand opera, Opera North also presents a Black History program featuring works by outstanding African-American composers and musicians and an Artist in Concert series featuring upcoming and established classical artists.
Opera North's outreach programs include the "Opera in the Schools" assembly programs which reach over 5,200 students each year in inner-city public and parochial schools and the "Opera North Youth Guild" which provides classical music education, performance opportunities, production training, and artistic exposure(s) for youth, ages eight through eighteen.
Opera North's productions and educational programs are supported, in part, by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, the Philadelphia Cultural Fund, William Penn Foundation, Lomax Family Foundation, Wachovia Bank, Citizens Bank, and the associated opera guilds of Opera North.
