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National Endowment for the Arts Opera Honors Awards Ceremony and Concert, Friday, October 22, 2010 at the Kennedy Center Opera HouseDay-of media opportunities available by arrangement October 14, 2010
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Opera Honors awards ceremony and concert will be held Friday, October 22, at 7:30 p.m. at the Kennedy Center Opera House, Washington D.C. This year's honorees—soprano Martina Arroyo, general director David DiChiera, composer Philip Glass and music director Eve Queler—are being acknowledged for their exceptional contributions to opera in America. Produced in cooperation with Washington National Opera and OPERA America, the NEA Opera Honors Awards Ceremony and Concert is free and open to the public. Day-of media opportunities will be available by arrangement; media contacts are below. For more information about each honoree, visit www.neaoperahonors.org. Prior to the awards ceremony and concert, audience members are invited to a panel discussion with the honorees, moderated by NPR's Tom Huizenga and beginning at 6:15 p.m. in the Kennedy Center Opera House. Tickets for the awards ceremony and concert will grant admission to the panel discussion. The evening will feature appearances by Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and NEA Senior Deputy Chairman Joan Shigekawa. Musical tributes will be given by some of the world's premier opera artists, including sopranos Leah Partridge and Tamara Wilson, mezzo-soprano Dolora Zajick, tenor Sean Panikkar and baritone Marian Pop. These artists will be joined by the Washington National Opera Orchestra under the baton of Washington National Opera's new music director, Philippe Auguin. Award presenters include jazz musician and composer Paquito D'Rivera for Ms. Arroyo, Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University Executive Director Brett Batterson for Dr. DiChiera, the Metropolitan Opera's Artistic Manager Sarah Billinghurst for Mr. Glass, and opera impresario Ira Siff for Ms. Queler. Video tributes featuring testimonials from luminaries of the opera world will round out the evening. Video tributes to the 2010 NEA Opera Honorees' lives and careers, as well as podcast interviews with the honorees, will be available online at www.neaoperahonors.org beginning October 22 at 9 a.m. This year's NEA Opera Honors awards ceremony and concert will be recorded by Chicago's WFMT 98.7 FM for delayed broadcast. The program will be distributed to classical radio outlets nationwide. The NEA will be live-tweeting this year's event. Follow the NEA Opera Honors on Twitter @NEAarts and share your Opera Honors experiences by tweeting with the hash tag #NEAopera. MEDIA OPPORTUNITIES: Members of the media are invited to cover this event and are alerted to a photo call with the honorees beginning at 7:10 p.m. Following the ceremony, media are invited to a short interview session with the Honorees. Credentials and press passes for the event may be obtained in advance through the press contacts below. PHOTOGRAPHY: Press photography is permitted at the event, and media must be credentialed in advance. For downloadable headshots and advance photos please contact Victoria Hutter at hutterv@arts.gov. Handout photos will be available to media for download at approximately 9:30 p.m. on October 22 via https://wno.box.net/shared/0gn57zuy6h. PRESS CONTACTS: PUBLIC TICKET INFORMATION: A full house is expected for the October 22 awards ceremony and concert. Due to unprecedented demand, reserved tickets are no longer available. Patrons who would like to reserve stand-by passes may sign up in advance. Individuals who reserve stand-by passes will be contacted as additional reserved seating becomes available. Stand-by passes may be secured online at www.dc-opera.org, by phone at 202.295.2400 or toll free at 800.US.OPERA, or at Washington National Opera's Box Office: 2600 Virginia Avenue NW, Suite 301, Washington, D.C. Washington National Opera is committed to serving patrons with disabilities. Wheelchair accessible seating, sign language interpreters, Braille and large print Playbills and assistive listening devices are available. Contact Audience Services at 202.295.2400, email adacoordinator@dc-opera.org, or visit www.dc-opera.org for more information.
National Endowment for the Arts · an independent federal agency |
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