Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts Announces Summer 2020 Opera, Symphony, and Dance Programming

Wolf Trap Opera’s (WTO) season includes three fully staged productions and a series of UNTRAPPED community partnership performances
Puccini’s tragic masterpiece, La bohème, is played out on the Filene Center stage featuring the 2020 Filene Artists in an original Wolf Trap Opera production
New productions at The Barns at Wolf Trap include Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin and Henze’s Elegy for Young Lovers
Wolf Trap Opera welcomes acclaimed American mezzo-soprano, Denyce Graves (’89), back as the 2020 Filene Artist in Residence
Steven Blier continues his collaboration with WTO with two special concerts, Te Adoro: Latin Theater Songs, featuring Joseph Li and Wolf Trap Opera soloists at The Barns
UNTRAPPED announces a new collaboration with George Washington’s Mount Vernon with Nelly’s Salon, a recital on a reproduction of Nelly Custis Washington’s 1793 harpsichord. The lineup continues with collaborations with the National Orchestral Institute + Festival (NOI+F) including Pops Extravaganza and Barber’s Knoxville, Summer 1915 featuring WTO soprano Shannon Jennings (’19, ’20)
The National Symphony Orchestra’s (NSO) summer performances at Wolf Trap include, Brandi Carlile, Holst’s The Planets: An HD Odyssey, and Star Spangled Symphony featuring pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet; and perennial favorite film scores come to life with Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince™ in Concert, The Princess Bride in Concert, and Star Wars: A New Hope in Concert
The summer dance offerings include the return of The Hong Kong Ballet presenting Septime Webre’s ALICE (in wonderland) and Richmond Ballet recreates John Butler’s original powerful choreography in a fully-staged production of Carl Orff’s magnificent and moving CARMINA BURANA by with Richmond Symphony & Chorus plus Wolf Trap Opera singers Christopher Bozeka, tenor, Alexandra Nowakowski, soprano, and Kidon Choi, baritone
Making its Filene Center debut is Not Our First Goat Rodeo featuring Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer, and Chris Thile with guest Aoife O’Donovan

Tickets go on sale to the public February 22; Wolf Trap members are buying now

Special on sale weekend promotions include

February 22 only:

$10 lawn tickets and $20 rear orchestra tickets for select shows including ALICE (in wonderland) (6/16), Black Violin (6/27), National Symphony Orchestra’s Star Spangled Symphony (7/17), National Symphony Orchestra’s The Planets: An HD Odyssey (7/23), Wolf Trap Opera’s La bohème (8/7)

and Richmond Ballet’s CARMINA BURANA (8/25) and more!

February 23 only:

Movie Popcorn Pack - Buy 4 lawn seats to the following movies and receive voucher for 2 free popcorns. Movies include: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince™ In Concert (7/10-11), Star Wars: A New Hope in Concert (7/18) and The Princess Bride In Concert (7/31).

February 24 only:

Opera Lovers Pack - Receive 20% off all tickets for Wolf Trap Opera’s

Eugene Onegin (6/21-27), Elegy for Young Lovers (7/19-25) and La bohème (8/7)

Vienna, Virginia (February 10, 2020) – Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts has announced the first performances of Summer 2020, including a diverse selection of classical programming, ranging from opera and orchestral music, to films with live orchestra and dance performances at the Filene Center at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts and at The Barns at Wolf Trap. Tickets go on sale to the general public beginning at 10 a.m. Saturday, February 22; Wolf Trap members (donors of $80 and up) have access to presales and are beginning to purchase tickets now. An opera, symphony and dance calendar, production information and casting, and a full WTO artist roster can be found here. To view the full season, including pop, rock, musicals and more, visit www.wolftrap.org/calendar. Ticketing information and links to print-ready photography are below.

Wolf Trap Opera’s season features new productions, company premieres, cross-disciplinary partnerships across the region, and a roster of some of opera’s most promising young artists. The schedule includes three fully staged productions.

The Opera season opens on June 21 with one of two debut productions at The Barns at Wolf Trap. The season begins with Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin with additional performances on June 23, 25 and 27. Also at The Barns at Wolf Trap, WTO will produce Henze’s rarely heard Elegy for Young Lovers on July 19, 22, and 25. At the Filene Center at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, WTO takes the stage on August 7, with the National Symphony Orchestra, for one night only with Puccini’s masterpiece La bohème. First performed in 1896, Puccini's tragic tale of youth, friendship, love and loss, set in 1840s Paris, has become one of the most beloved operas of all time.

The Wolf Trap Opera season also includes the highly popular annual recital with Steven Blier of the New York Festival of Song. This year’s concert, Te Adoro: Latin Theater Songs, on May 30 and 31, explores Spanish zarzuela and love songs with Joseph Li and Wolf Trap Opera soloists. The crowd-pleasing Aria Jukebox, where the audience votes on the pieces to be performed, will be held on July 26 at The Barns.

Wolf Trap Opera continues its UNTRAPPED initiative with two collaborations with the National Orchestral Institute + Festival at The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center. On May 30, NOI+F and WTO will present Pops Extravaganza featuring Wolf Trap Opera soloists performing key operatic excerpts from Moonstruck, The Fifth Element and more, under the direction of conductor John Morris Russell. Barber’s nostalgic and sentimental, Knoxville, Summer 1915, will be performed with soprano Shannon Jennings and a chamber orchestra from NOI+F on June 6. WTO singers will return to The Phillips Collection for Vocal Colors, marrying live music with works of art on June 11 and July 9. WTO announces a new collaboration with George Washington’s Mount Vernon with a recital on a reproduction of Nelly Custis Washington’s 1793 harpsicord titled Nelly’s Salon, on July 24 at Mount Vernon.

The National Symphony Orchestra, Wolf Trap’s longest artistic partner, brings New Zealand-born conductor Gemma New to the Filene Center on July 17 for Star Spangled Symphony, which also features pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet performing Gershwin’s Piano Concerto. Perfect for nights under the stars, on July 23, Holst’s The Planets: An HD Odyssey will be conducted by Thomas Wilkins, the program also features violinist Bomsori Kim for the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto. Wolf Trap’s popular film series continues with two nights of the sixth installment of the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince™ in Concert on July 10 and 11, plus Star Wars: A New Hope in Concert on July 18, and The Princess Bride in Concert on July 31. In addition, Wolf Trap and the NSO welcomes Brandi Carlile with special guest Tanya Tucker, in one of their only two symphonic engagements of the summer, on July 24 and 25.

On June 16, The Hong Kong Ballet brings Septime Webre’s ever-popular ALICE (in wonderland) back to life. This giddy, over-the-top reimagining of Lewis Carroll’s classic tale promises exhilarating fun for all ages. Bursting with energy and imagination, Webre’s telling of this tale is a wild, wild ride down the rabbit hole. In a unique partnership, Wolf Trap Foundation welcomes Richmond Ballet as they bring together a cast of hundreds in a fully-staged production of Orff’s monumental and moving CARMINA BURANA with Richmond Symphony & Chorus on August 25.

Yo-Yo Ma returns to the Filene Center stage on August 12 with Not Our First Goat Rodeo—combining his talents with those of Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer, and Chris Thile with guest Aoife O’Donovan—to create a unique, genre-breaking sound that’s part composed, part improvised, and uniquely them.

Ticketing and On-Sale Information

Tickets for these performances go on sale to the public on Saturday, February 22 at 10 a.m.

Pricing varies by performance and seat location, and are subject to change. See individual performance listings online or the calendar below for prices.

Wolf Trap members have access to exclusive presales and may purchase tickets in advance of the general public. Memberships start at $80 and are tax-deductible less the value of goods and services provided. For more information, visit wolftrap.org/membership.

Special on sale promotions offered on February 22 only: $10 lawn tickets and $20 rear orchestra tickets for select shows including ALICE (in wonderland) (6/16), Black Violin (6/27), National Symphony Orchestra’s Star Spangled Symphony (7/17), National Symphony Orchestra’s The Planets: An HD Odyssey (7/23), Wolf Trap Opera’s La bohème (8/7) and Richmond Ballet’s CARMINA BURANA (8/25) and more! February 23 only: Movie Popcorn Pack - Buy 4 lawn seats to the following movies and receive voucher for 2 free popcorns. Movies include: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince™ In Concert (7/10-11), Star Wars: A New Hope in Concert (7/18) and The Princess Bride In Concert (7/31). February 24 only: Opera Lovers Pack - Receive 20% off all tickets for Wolf Trap Opera’s Eugene Onegin (6/21-27), Elegy for Young Lovers (7/19-25) and La bohème (8/7).

Starting February 22, tickets may be purchased:

Online at wolftrap.org
By phone at 877.WOLFTRAP
In-person at the Filene Center Box Office, 1551 Trap Road, Vienna, VA

Wolf Trap’s 2020 season is made possible by generous support from the following

Wolf Trap Foundation Official Sponsors and Partners:

Dan and Gayle D’Aniello, Wolf Trap 2020 Season Underwriters

The PNC Foundation, Premier Sponsor, 2020 Summer Season
The Boeing Company, Major Sponsor, Boeing Salutes Series
American Airlines, Official Airline
Hilton, Official Hotel
Steinway, Official Pianos

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Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, produces and presents a full range of performance and education programs in the greater Washington area, as well as nationally. Wolf Trap features three performance venues: the outdoor Filene Center and Children’s Theatre-in-the-Woods, both located at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, and The Barns at Wolf Trap, located down the road from the national park and adjacent to the Center for Education at Wolf Trap. The 7,028-seat Filene Center is operated in partnership with the National Park Service and annually showcases an extensive array of diverse artists, ranging from pop, country, folk, and blues to classical music, dance, and theatre, as well as multimedia presentations, from May through September. The Barns at Wolf Trap is operated by the Wolf Trap Foundation year round, and during the summer months is home to the Grammy-nominated Wolf Trap Opera, one of America’s outstanding resident ensemble programs for young opera singers. Wolf Trap’s education programs include the nationally acclaimed Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, Children’s Theatre-in-the-Woods, a diverse array of arts education classes, grants, and a nationally recognized internship program.

Media Information

(Please do not publish contact information)

Erick Hoffman

Director, Communications

703.255.1917 or erickh@wolftrap.org

High-resolution artist and venue images are available in Wolf Trap’s online newsroom or may be provided upon request.
Complete performance information is online at wolftrap.org, and included in the press calendar.
Interviews with artists may be available upon request and by arrangement with the Wolf Trap PR team.
Requests for complimentary Press Tickets will be accepted beginning April 22, 2020.

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Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts Announces Summer 2020 Opera, Symphony, and Dance Programming