(Oct. 17, 2017) — For 15 years, The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Lyric Theatre’s Opera on the Run program has collaborated with the Opera Guild of San Antonio to bring opera education into elementary school classrooms in San Antonio and other Texas cities.
The nationally recognized program sends student volunteers, faculty and staff to schools to teach young students how an opera is written and produced. Through the partnership with the Opera Guild of San Antonio, UTSA facuty and music students have reached more than 200,000 students in San Antonio, Austin, Dallas and other Texas cities.
The upcoming production for Opera on the Run called Beautiful Dreamer, is the first original piece written and produced by William McCrary, director of Lyric Theatre and associate professor of music at UTSA. The opera, which has been in workshop mode for the past year, tells the story of Little Mac, a young boy from the town of Niceville, who prefers reading books instead of spending time on his cellphone. After seeing some cruel comments about himself on social media, Little Mac must find a way to make Niceville “nice” once again.
“The opera’s storyline addresses the serious problem of cyber bullying using a fairy tale approach for younger audiences to understand, “said McCrary. “We want young students to understand how cyberbullying can have serious, long-lasting effects on a person.”
The music was inspired by the tunes of Stephen Foster and written by McCrary and Michelle Pietri, who also teaches in the UTSA Department of Music. Additional music and arrangements were done by UTSA composition faculty member Ethan Wickman.
A string ensemble and a local folk/bluegrass band called Down for the Count, made up of UTSA music faculty, are also a part of this production.
The opera will be performed at 3 p.m. on Sunday, October 29, 2017, in the UTSA Recital Hall on the Main Campus. Proceeds from the performance will benefit the William McCrary Endowment for Opera Education.
The UTSA Lyric Theatre program is part of the Department of Music, which is nationally recognized and accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music. The department includes world-renowned faculty members and researchers who prepare students to become educators and performers who are successful in the music industry.
UTSA is recognized as one of the top five young universities in the nation by Times Higher Education.
