Tuesday, October 9, 4:30–6:30pm
List Hall, The Metropolitan Opera
Curriculum Connections: Music, Theater, Social Studies (Psychology/Human Relations), and Language Arts
Grade Level: 6th grade and up

In 1871, Verdi’s Aida took the musical world by storm. Following this success, the 58-year-old composer considered himself retired and retreated to his villa in the country. But then his publisher, in an attempt to coax him into writing another opera, brought Verdi together with Arrigo Boito, a writer (and composer) 30 years Verdi’s junior, and the two suggested a new project: an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Othello. Italian opera would never be the same.

Join us on Tuesday, October 9 for an interactive workshop on Verdi’s masterpiece. Actor, director, and Shakespeare Teaching Artist Elizabeth London will highlight the triangle of intimate relationships at the heart of the opera and the innovative musical techniques employed by Verdi through a variety of hands-on activities. Teachers will explore language as a means both of personal expression and of manipulation, and become familiar with the key characters in Otello, the unspoken issues in their relationships, and the genius of Verdi and Boito in depicting these for their audience. Met Radio Commentator and author Will Berger will discuss why Verdi might well be considered the world’s most popular opera composer and how his music, even when highly complex, has always reached people in a direct and profound manner.

Tuesday, November 13, 4:30–6:30pm
List Hall, The Metropolitan Opera
Curriculum Connections: Music, Theater, Social Studies (Sociology/Psychology), Language Arts (character development and relationships), and Mathematics (graphic depictions of information)
Grade Level: Elementary and up
The workshop is free and open to all teachers

From the soft, stirring notes of the prelude to the magnificent Triumphal March and the heart-wrenching finale, Aida has captured the imaginations of operagoers for nearly a century and a half. At first glance an epic, monumental drama of ancient Egypt, it is at its heart the simplest and most tragic of tales – an intimate story of loves forbidden, unrequited, and enmeshed in a struggle for imperial power. Verdi’s boldly atmospheric and colorful score never overwhelms the expressions of tenderness, jealousy, and longing that drive its three central characters: an Egyptian warrior, the enslaved Ethiopian princess he loves, and her royal mistress.

Join us on Tuesday, November 13 for an interactive workshop exploring the tangled web of love and duty in Verdi’s Aida. The activities will examine the plot, characters, and complex interpersonal relationships in the opera.  We’ll consider the Western European essence of this ancient Egyptian opera, as well as the relevance of its artistry a century and a half after its premiere. Calling attention to both the opera’s timeless truths and its cultural contradictions, this workshop will offer educators knowledge and critical resources with which to enhance their students’ enjoyment of this Live in HD production.

Training rate payment is available for teachers who attend the workshop and bring students to the December 15 Aida broadcast. Met workshops also count towards required professional development hours. Attend the workshop, and purchase discounted tickets ($27.50) to Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro on Tuesday, November 13 at 7:30pm.

Wednesday, February 6, 5:00–6:30pm
List Hall, The Metropolitan Opera
Curriculum Connections: Music, Theater, Social Studies (Psychology/Human Relations), and Language Arts
Grade Level: Elementary – High School 

Attend the workshop, and purchase discounted tickets to Verdi’s Don Carlo. The workshop is free and open to all teachers. Training rate payment is available for teachers who attend the workshop and bring students to the Rigoletto broadcast. Met workshops also count towards required professional development hours.   

Professional storyteller and Teaching Artist Tom Lee will unpack Verdi’s tragic tale and its three main characters; the deformed and caustic court jester, the rakish nobleman he serves, and the jester’s naïve teenage daughter who gets caught between them. Directed by Michael Mayer (Broadway’s Spring Awakening and American Idiot) and set in 1960 Las Vegas, this production will not only expose your students to some of the most famous music in the classical canon, but provide a terrific example of masterful dramatic storytelling.

Presenter Tom Lee trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and is an arts educator for the Yale Center for British Art, Director of Arts Education for Spencertown Academy's artsVOYAGE program, as well as a frequent guest at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Thursday, April 4, 4:30–6:30pm
List Hall, The Metropolitan Opera
Curriculum Connections: Music, Theater, English Literature (especially Shakespeare), Ancient History, World & European History, Dance
Grade Level: Elementary and up
The workshop is free and open to all teachers

Handel’s Giulio Cesare tells the love story of Caesar and Cleopatra, two of the ancient world’s most famous characters. The Metropolitan Opera’s new production incorporates elements of Baroque theater, British imperialism, and Bollywood-inspired moves. David Daniels, today’s leading counter-tenor, and soprano Natalie Dessay, one of opera’s greatest singing actresses, play the lead roles.  Says director David McVicar, “Giulio Cesare is a kaleidoscope of an opera – a semi-comic, semi-tragic adventure story.”

Join us on Thursday, April 4 for an experiential workshop that will make language accessible and bring the story and characters to life.  Teaching Artist Elizabeth London will guide participants through exercises that explore the form of the Da Capo aria – the main feature of Baroque opera – through poetry, monologue, and music. And since “all speech is a kind of singing,” participants will also unpack the complexities of the title characters’ relationships through a close reading and listening of the arias of Caesar and Cleopatra.

Training rate payment is available for teachers who attend the workshop and bring students to the April 27 Giulio Cesare broadcast. Met workshops also count towards required professional development hours. Attend the workshop, and purchase discounted tickets to that evening’s performance of Giulio Cesare!