Houston Grand Opera to Present Free Summer Programming for Kids | Community

The company’s teaching artists will share music, stories and enriching activities with young people in the city’s community spaces

Houston Grand Opera (HGO) is proud to announce plans to present a variety of arts programs for K-2 students in Houston this summer. Families are invited to join the teaching artists in company at spaces such as Levy Park, the Children’s Museum of Houston, and branches of the Harris County Public Library System and Houston Public Libraries.

“We are excited to share the joy of storytelling through words and music with young Houstonians in spaces across our limitless city,” says HGO Managing Director and CEO. Khori Dastoor. “Serving families seeking high-quality art and culture is at the heart of our mission at HGO. As a mom myself, I’m always looking for opportunities for my daughters to have fun, interact with their peers, and experience something truly special.

“The Harris County Public Library is excited to once again partner with HGO to offer youth programming through our 2024 Summer Reading Program,” says Jennifer Schwartz, Senior Manager of Library Services. HCPL programming. “Our collaboration with HGO has allowed us to bring the transformative power of the arts to children, many of whom would not have had access to it otherwise. Studies show that arts and music programs like those offered by HGO help children develop and improve social skills, regulate their emotions and can have a significant impact on academic achievement. These offers are among the most popular and most anticipated by children and parents.

The company will offer two types of programming as part of this initiative. Sing! Move! Play! (SMP) celebrates opera’s greatest hits through action-packed workshops filled with singing, rhythmic movement and creative play, while sharing music from classic operas. Featured music includes:

• The Marriage of FigaroMozart’s timeless comedy masterpiece
• Neapolitan songs, favorite Italian art songs
• CarmenBizet’s ever-popular opera
• Italian classics, the greatest opera hits

Storybook Opera (SBO) brings children’s books to life through song as HGO teaching artists present an engaging and enjoyable introduction to opera for students. Books featured include:

• The dream of the armadillo by HGO singer Dennis Arrowsmith, about an armadillo with opera star dreams (available in English and Spanish versions)
• The three little pigs, a classic fable
• opera cat by Tess Weaver, about a cat and its owner, an opera diva
• Bilingual Agua/Agüita And Fuego/Fueguito by Jorge Argueta, on water and the natural world
• Towards the West Ho, Carlotta! by Candace Fleming, about an opera singer who pursues her dreams in the West
• Ruby’s Chinese New Year by Vickie Lee, about a girl who receives a gift for her grandmother with the help of the Chinese zodiac animals
• Lula the mighty Griot by Deborah DEEP Mouton, former Houston poet laureate, about a girl who defends her village against ravenous alligators

Your location (free for children, from kindergarten to 2nd grade):

July 22 at 11 a.m.: Oak Forest Neighborhood Library, SMP/The magic flute

For more information, visit HGO.org/Community-and-Learning.