Arizona Opera Company

ARIZONA OPERA ELEVATES THE TRANSFORMATIVE POWER OF STORYTELLING THROUGH MUSIC (CONT ON SCH O)

DIGITAL OFFERINGS - ARIZONA OPERA REIMAGINED ITS 2020/21 SEASON (I.E., FY2021), INCLUDING DIGITAL OFFERINGS AND OUTDOOR, SOCIALLY DISTANCED CONCERTS. BY USING THE INFINITE POSSIBILITIES OF THE VIRTUAL MARKETPLACE, AZO CREATED MULTIMEDIA PROJECTS THAT EXPANDED THE COMPANY'S REACH BEYOND TRADITIONAL AND IN-PERSON AUDIENCES. MANY PROGRAMS WERE SO WELL RECEIVED THAT THEY HAVE CONTINUED IN THE 2021/22 SEASON (I.E., FY2022), AND WILL BE EXTENDED INTO THE 2022/23 SEASON (I.E., FY2023). IN TERMS OF NEW DIGITAL OFFERINGS, FOR EXAMPLE, A NEW VIDEO SERIES AVAILABLE ON YOUTUBE AND ARIZONA OPERA ONDEMAND IS "LOUD! (LIVING OPERA, UNDERSTANDING DIVERSITY)," A PROGRAM DESIGNED TO CONNECT COMMUNITIES THROUGH DISCUSSIONS WITH DIVERSE CROSS-SECTIONS OF THE COMMUNITY, SHOWCASING ARTS AND CULTURE IN THE WEST, AND HIGHLIGHTING STORIES THAT ARE FOCUSED ON MUSIC AND GROUNDED IN THEIR SOMETIMES-SURPRISING CONNECTIONS TO THE WORLD OF OPERA. "UNMIC'D" IS ANOTHER VIDEO SERIES THAT PREMIERED DURING THE PANDEMIC AND THAT CONTINUES TODAY, EXPLORING THE BLURRY EDGE THAT CONNECTS THE WORLD OF OPERA TO JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING ELSE. "ARIZONA OPERA: BEHIND THE SCENES! A PODCAST" SHARES AN ALL-ACCESS LOOK AT AZO. THE ARIZONA OPERA BOOK CLUB WENT VIRTUAL IN FY2021 AND DUE TO PARTICIPANT FEEDBACK IN PHOENIX AND TUCSON, THE CLUB WILL STAY VIRTUAL IN 2022/23, MAKING IT MORE ACCESSIBLE TO LARGER NUMBERS OF PARTICIPANTS. THESE PROGRAMS CONTINUE TO BE FEATURED ON ARIZONA OPERA'S STREAMING PLATFORM, ARIZONA OPERA ONDEMAND, IN ADDITION TO APPEARING IN VARIOUS CONTENT ACROSS ARIZONA OPERA'S SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS. IN TOTAL, THESE CONCERTS AND THEIR RELATED CONTENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA HAVE ACHIEVED APPROXIMATELY 18,228 VIEWS TO DATE. DURING FY2021, YOUTH PROGRAMS WERE PRIMARILY OFFERED IN VIRTUAL SETTINGS, PIVOTING AWAY FROM IN-SCHOOL PERFORMANCES DURING THE TIME THEY WERE NOT POSSIBLE DUE TO THE PANDEMIC. MASTERCLASSES WITH SCHOOLS AND MUSICAL STORYTIMES WERE MADE AVAILABLE ON ARIZONA OPERA ONDEMAND ON YOUTUBE. VIRTUAL MASTERCLASSES REACHED STUDENTS ACROSS THE COUNTRY DURING THE PANDEMIC, FROM NEW YORK TO CALIFORNIA, AND SERVED HOMESCHOOLED STUDENTS AS WELL. THESE OFFERINGS AFFORDED THE OPPORTUNITY FOR ENGAGEMENT DURING THE PANDEMIC AND CREATES OPPORTUNITIES FOR PARTICIPATION OUTSIDE OF ARIZONA. THESE PROGRAMS CONTINUE TO BE FEATURED ON ARIZONA OPERA'S STREAMING PLATFORM, ARIZONA OPERA ONDEMAND, IN ADDITION TO APPEARING IN VARIOUS CONTENT ACROSS ARIZONA OPERA'S SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS. IN TOTAL, THESE CONCERTS AND THEIR RELATED CONTENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA HAVE ACHIEVED APPROXIMATELY 37,404 VIEWS TO DATE.

"THE COPPER QUEEN" WAS ORIGINALLY SLATED TO BE PERFORMED IN THEATRE, BUT WAS DELAYED DUE TO THE PANDEMIC. INSTEAD OF CANCELING THE PRODUCTION ALTOGETHER, AZO CHOSE TO REIMAGINE THE SHOW AS THE COMPANY'S FIRST FILM PROJECT, WHICH WAS FILMED DURING FY2021. "THE COPPER QUEEN" PREMIERED ON HARKINS MOVIE SCREENS IN BOTH PHOENIX AND TUCSON IN FALL 2021 FOR A WEEKLONG+ RUN, IN ADDITION TO STREAMING ON ARIZONA OPERA'S ONLINE PLATFORM "ARIZONA OPERA ONDEMAND," WHERE IT HAS REACHED APPROXIMATELY 1,000 VIEWS TO DATE. "THE COPPER QUEEN" IS NOT ONLY AZO'S FIRST FILM PROJECT, BUT IT IS ALSO THE COMPANY'S SECOND WORLD PREMIERE COMMISSION, FOCUSING ON THE ARIZONA STORY OF THE FAMOUSLY HAUNTED BISBEE HOTEL OF THE SAME NAME. IT IS A WONDERFUL INTRODUCTION TO OPERA FOR NEW AUDIENCES AND SEASONED OPERA-LOVERS ALIKE AND IS CONTINUING TO EXTEND INTERNATIONAL AWARENESS OF ARIZONA OPERA'S WORK THROUGH ADDITIONAL SCREENINGS AT FILM FESTIVALS.