(c) Jonathan Stinson
Used with permission
Tri-Cities Opera Opera invites you to the forest! Meet Goldilocks, a lonely girl who is looking for a place to belong, and the three bears, who are upset that she has entered their house uninvited and scheme to frighten her away. Set as a sequel to the familiar fairy tale, this opera explores critical themes of loneliness and belonging, balancing safety with welcome, and treating others with compassion–all through an interactive and imaginative setting!
Named as a nod to Binghamton’s famous carousels, Opera-Go-Round has been delivering the excitement of a fully-staged children’s opera to schools throughout New York State and northern Pennsylvania for nearly 50 years. Students engage with our singers and pianist to explore this unique art form with stories connected to curriculum standards and take away valuable social-emotional learning lessons.
Recommended Ages: 4-12 years old (Pre-K to 6th Grades)
Cost: $1,400 within 50 miles of TCO Opera Center, $1,500 over 50 miles from TCO Opera Center. Limited grant funding is available to address access barriers. Schools may be eligible for BOCES Arts-In-Education funding, up to the cost of the performance.
The program includes a 35-minute performance and 15-minute question and answer session with the Opera-Go-Round team.
Dates are available from late September 2025 through May 2026. Contact ogr@tricitiesopera.org for more information or to schedule your performance!
Creative Studio finds what students are interested in learning and create studios to teach them. We group participants with similar interests, goals, and ages. So far, we’ve explored basic music theory, ear training, singing, instruments playing (piano and cello), composing with music software, playing music themed video games, and more. It is about fun, communication, positivity, creativity, problem solving, and beyond.
Recommended participants: Grades 2 and up
Fee: $250 per participant per semester (A limited number of need-based fee-waivers are available)
TCO Youth Choir aims to provide children extra vocal training and performing opportunities in addition to their artistic activities at school.
Born and raised in Taiwan, Ü started piano lessons at the age of five, started cello lessons at the age of ten, received her BM in voice from the National Taiwan Normal University under the guidance of Professor Dau-Hsiong Tseng (aka the Godfather of Opera for Taiwan), and received her MM from Manhattan School of Music as a Collaborative Piano Major in Professor Thomas Muraco’s studio. With the ability to learn and memorize quickly, Ü has received often calls to cover for last minute emergencies. Ü has participated in over 40 theater productions and thousands of performances around the world as a conductor, mainstage singer, coach, instrumentalist, and more.
Starting from “Mathematical Thinking” taught by Keith Devlin from Stanford University out of curiosity during her spare time in 2015, Ü has taken several math and computer science courses online and turned this into another career in big data analysis which has helped individuals, companies, and government agencies. Realizing how music training could apply into computer science and problem solving, Ü hopes to share her discovery and joy with more people.
Midwest native Elizabeth (Beth) Duhr-Ramirez is a versatile singer and music educator. A BM Vocal Performance graduate of the University of Iowa, and graduate of the joint Resident Artist Training Program/Binghamton University MM in Opera degree, Beth has performed a wide range of repertoire, from the operatic stage to concert hall and cabaret.
Storytelling through song is a passion of Beth’s, which led to operatic performances with the Martha Ellen Tye Opera Theatre, City Opera of the Quad Cities, Cedar Rapids Opera, and as a concert soloist with Bemidji Symphony, Scranton Civic Orchestra, and the Susquehanna Valley Chorale.
As a music educator, Beth spent nine years teaching voice at the Performing Arts Institute of Wyoming Seminary. In addition, Ms. Duhr-Ramirez has taught both private and group voice classes for 19 years. A certified Music Together® teacher, Beth opened “Tri Cities Music Together,” offering caregiver and child music classes for children from birth through five years, in the greater Binghamton area, through 2020.
Beth currently teaches music to preschool students, at Saint Anthony’s Learning Center, in Endicott, NY, and maintains a private voice studio, with students ranging from eight to eighty years old.
Tri-Cities Opera invites you to invite us to your senior center, assisted living, or residential care facility for a recital and talk featuring some of the greatest hits from the operatic and Broadway canons.
We know that for seniors and residents of residential care facilities, travel to our mainstage productions may be difficult or impossible. But that shouldn’t mean a lack of access to high-quality arts programming! Tri-Cities Opera will curate a thoughtful program with selections ranging from operatic favorites like Mozart and Verdi to the Golden Age of Broadway. Presentations will also include an educational element with a member of our staff sharing and taking questions about the operatic art form, the context of music performed, and the 75-year history of Tri-Cities Opera’s contribution to our regional arts community.
Exposure to music improves the quality of life and health outcomes of seniors and residents of care facilities. Music can lessen the effects of memory loss and depression and can improve the immune system. And, concert programs like ours that encourage residents and community members to enjoy music together can encourage socialization and decrease isolation. TCO is proud and excited to honor and serve the seniors of our region through this program.
Length: Approximately 45 minutes
Cost: $800 within 50 miles of TCO Opera Center, $850 over 50 miles from TCO Opera Center. Limited grant funding is available to address access barriers.
