Opera for Children

Opera is for Everyone!

Opera connotes a high brow artistic entertainment. But to put it simply, opera is a musical drama. Don't be intimidated. Plunge in and learn about an opera today!

Taking children (and yourself!) to the opera is the best experience! But before you invest in expensive tickets, be sure to spend some time learning about what you will be seeing.

Since the opera will probably be in a foreign language, learn the basic story outline, so you can enjoy the costumes and music without being glued to any translations offered during the performance.

Listen to some recordings of the music so you will be familiar with them and can enjoy the anticipation of hearing your favorite pieces.

And if going to an opera is out of the question, you can still enjoy this art form through audio and video productions.

Free Opera Resources for Newbies

OperaGlass -- Opera for Everyone: What a fabulous resource! Free mp3 audio files that combine opera with very helpful commentary. Four operas are included: Rossini's The Barber of Seville (1816); Verdi's La Traviata (1853); Bizet's Carmen (1875); and Puccini's Madama Butterfly (1904). The content offered for free here can also be purchased from Amazon.
Opera for Beginners: This site is wealth of information for someone wanting to go a tad bit deeper. If you're looking for DVD recommendations, this is the place to go!
Opera Summaries: Story summaries for many operas, conveniently divided by acts and scenes.
Manitoba Opera -- Learn About Opera: This page offers some great educational PDFs about opera!

Newbie Opera Choices

opera

La Boheme by Puccini
- Visit Classics for Kids for free audio programs about Puccini's operas.
- Manitoba Opera has a great PDF study guide for La Boheme.
Carmen by Bizet
- Visit Classics for Kids for more about Bizet.
- The Toledo Opera offers a free study guide for Carmen.
Barber of Seville by Rossini
- Visit Classics for Kids for more about Rossini.
- The Dayton Opera has a free PDF study guide for the Barber of Seville.
- The San Francisco Opera offers an even more indepth study guide!
Magic Flute or Marriage of Figaro by Mozart
- Visit Classics for Kids for free audio programs about the Magic Flute and other Mozart operas
- The Manitoba Opera has a great Study Guide for The Marriage of Figaro.
- The San Diego Opera has another, more simplistic study guide that includes full color images.

World's Best Opera for Kids

World's Very Best Opera for Kids... in English!

Amazon Price: $12.99 (as of 08/21/2008)
Used Price: $9.54

I have this CD! It's a great introduction because the words are in English. So you can learn the meaning of the piece while you are becoming familiar with the music. Several of the most famous arias from various operas are featured here. Let your child choose his favorite song and then explore that entire opera in depth.

Young Person's Guide to Opera

The Young Person's Guide to the Opera: With Music from the Great Operas (Book & CD)

by Anita Ganeri, Nicola Barber

Amazon Price: (as of 08/21/2008)
Used Price: $24.90

This would be a good next step up after using the CD above. It's a great reference book to have on the shelf as you study various composers and operas.