Opera Colorado Blends New, Old, Serious and Silly

Those who think of opera as stuffy entertainment might want to check out an Opera Colorado production to see why this traditional art form can be fun. Take a favorite such as Mozart's Così Fan Tutte: two young naval officers bet on the fidelity of their sweethearts and disguise themselves to woo each other's woman and put each of them to the test. Doesn't that sound more like the plot of the latest Hollywood romantic comedy?

Of course, for years the internationally acclaimed Opera Colorado has also offered more serious and sometimes tragic fare, such as La Traviata and Carmen. Since the opening performances in April, 1983 of Otello and La Bohème, starring all-time great tenor Placido Domingo, this opera company has continued to bring to Denver many of the classics — along with newer works like Sweeney Todd and the curious Nixon in China.

Opera Colorado stages its productions in the Ellie Caulkins Opera House. With its 2,225 seats and great acoustics, the "Ellie," as it is called, continues to draw and delight patrons. (The Ellie also houses the Colorado Ballet.)

For performances in foreign languages, patrons can follow the storyline with written translations electronically displayed in English or Spanish on backlit monitors at every seat. Opera Colorado was one of the first U.S. opera ho uses to offer the high-tech Figaro System.

The Elle is only part of the huge Denver Performing Arts Complex — the second-largest such in the world, after the Lincoln Center in New York.  Located in downtown Denver on a four-block, 12-acre site, "The Plex" houses 10 performance spaces with a total of 10,000 seats, all under the umbrella of a single, 80-foot-high glass roof. Amongst them is the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.

Tours of the opera house are available by contacting the arts complex tour office at (720) 931-TOUR.

Opera; shows; Carmen; Placido Domingo; Sweeney Todd; Ellie Caulkins; DPAC;