New Mexico
Opera Extravaganza: The Santa Fe Opera Festival Season
Program No. 11299RJ
Attend five live performances and enjoy expert discussions on Santa Fe’s opera scene as you take in the museums, plazas and unique sites of this historic city.
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8 days
7 nights
16 meals
7B 4L 5D
6
Opera Class, Free Time, La Bohème
Santa Fe
8
Program Concludes
Santa Fe
At a Glance
Explore the wonders of the opera world as you experience this season's productions of the Santa Fe Opera and enjoy the exciting combination of music, theater, writing, art and dance. Program lectures will inform you about the composer, music, singers and the story of each work you experience.
Activity Level
On Your Feet
Getting on and off the motorcoach. Walking up to two miles over the course of the day on paved and unpaved surfaces. Standing up to one hour at a time. Negotiating at least one flight of stairs.
Best of all, you’ll…
- Attend an array of staged productions starring some of the finest singers from the U.S. and abroad in a spectacular open-air amphitheater.
- Enjoy a Santa Fe city field trip and explore the museums at world-renowned Museum Hill.
- Dive deep into each production with daily presentations by our expert opera instructor.
General Notes
Program limited to 70 participants, divided into two smaller groups of 35 for many activities. Small group assignments will be made approximately one month prior to the program start date. If you are traveling with companions who are not your roommate and you would like to be grouped together, please list their names on your “Personal Information & Preferences” in your Road Scholar “My Account” page.” Approximately two weeks prior to the program departure you will receive an email with your group assignment and Group Leader information. Upgraded seats available. Each program attends all five performances presented by the Santa Fe Opera; the itinerary varies by program according to the Opera's performance schedule.
Featured Expert
All trip experts
Oliver Prezant
Oliver Prezant is a lecturer and educator for the Santa Fe Opera and has presented for the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, the Guilds of the San Francisco Opera, and other organizations. He was the music director/conductor of the Santa Fe Community Orchestra, and a faculty member of the College of Santa Fe and Santa Fe University of Art and Design. He studied conducting at the Pierre Monteux School and is a graduate of the Mannes College of Music in New York City.
Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.
Oliver Prezant
View biography
Oliver Prezant is a lecturer and educator for the Santa Fe Opera and has presented for the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, the Guilds of the San Francisco Opera, and other organizations. He was the music director/conductor of the Santa Fe Community Orchestra, and a faculty member of the College of Santa Fe and Santa Fe University of Art and Design. He studied conducting at the Pierre Monteux School and is a graduate of the Mannes College of Music in New York City.
Christopher Gibson
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Christopher Gibson is an award-winning artist, writer, and arts educator who makes his home in Albuquerque, New Mexico. His work includes the Cuentos del Camino series on lower Cerrillos Road in Santa Fe and mixed-media installations at numerous museums in New Mexico and California. Over the years, he has written several articles on Hispanic arts and culture for the magazines "Tradición Revista" and "Imagen."
Sherry Moon
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Sherry Moon is a certified interpreter for the profession of heritage interpretation and an experienced group leader. She has a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications and has taught communication and art. For nearly 20 years, she has been a group leader specializing in the Southwest and Alaska/Yukon. As president of the Rocky Mountain Guides Association, she is regarded as a local expert. Her interests include the arts, history, heritage, geology, reading, outdoor activities, and socializing with friends.
Suggested Reading List
(9 books)
Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop
You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
Opera Extravaganza: The Santa Fe Opera Festival Season
Program Number: 11299
Santa Fe, History of an Ancient City
A revised edition of of this classic history of Santa Fe to the mid-nineteenth century, featuring essays by ten scholars and hundreds of archival photographs, drawings and maps.
Indian Arts of the Southwest
Featuring color photographs of the basketry, pottery, weaving, jewelry, and carvings of 200 noted artists, this book is both a collector's guide and cultural history of the Navajo, Hopi, Zuni, Pueblo peoples and other native peoples.
The Penguin Concise Guide to Opera
An essential reference for the opera enthusiast. Well organized, with short descriptions of plots, characters, performances and historical background.
Dark Beauty, Photographs of New Mexico
Southwest photographer Parsons presents the rugged landscapes and the people of New Mexico, exploring religious iconography, far-flung ranches, small towns and wide open spaces in this full-color coffee table book.
Santa Fe
Filled with the dynamic culture of Santa Fe (a uniquely wonderful piece of the USA) this book of images moves through the seasons, capturing summer’s low-rider cars, autumn’s harvest, spring’s bursting of color and much more in The City Different.
The Spell of New Mexico
A selection of 12 thoughtful essays on the New Mexico state of mind by great writers, including C.G. Jung, Mary Austin, D.H. Lawrence and Lawrence Clark Powell. Hillerman succeeds in communicating the lure of the desert Southwest in this wonderful, literate introduction to the state.
A History of Opera
Filled with insights and arguments, meditations and composer biographies, this passionate genealogy of opera has been praised by the Times of London as "The best single volume ever written on the subject."
Opera 101, A Complete Guide to Learning and Loving Opera
A well-written introduction to opera, this volume includes a brief history of the art form, a guide to operatic terms and a review of 11 famous operas.
New Mexico, A History
This cooperative effort between three native New Mexicans is the first complete history of New Mexico. It charts the state’s development from 16th-century Spanish colony to frontier province, from its 1912 American statehood to a hub of (often classified) scientific research. A vital source for anyone seeking to understand the complex history of the West.