Utah Symphony & Opera will venture into the land of fairy tales and legends with their partners in art, film, music and literature during the Once Upon a Time Festival throughout February and March. The keystones of the festival will be Utah Opera’s hilarious production of Rossini’s Cinderella (La Cenerentola) and two Utah Symphony performances of Edvard Grieg’s fanciful music.

“By collaborating with outside arts organizations, we can offer a broad exploration of the festival’s theme which enhances and enriches patrons’ experiences during our performances,” said Paula Fowler, Director of Education and Community Outreach for Utah Symphony & Opera.

Reagan Tolboe of the SLC Film Center added, “We feel passionately about bringing the community together and partnering with various groups to encourage entertainment, education and dialogue. This is a great example of how we can enhance Utah audiences' experience...and relive the joy of the fairy tales of our youth.”

Arts organizations such as the City Library, Pioneer Theatre, Ballet West, the SLC Film Center and the Utah Museum of Fine Arts will offer several events that explore myths and fairy tales, especially those surrounding the story of Cinderella.

“We are very excited to be a part of this collaboration. Our art exhibition about Cinderella is made richer through an opera, more exciting through a ballet, and more understood through theatre and literature,” said Virginia Catherall, Director of Public Programs at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts (UMFA).

The UMFA’s exhibition of "Cinderella: Masks, Magic, and Mirrors" runs through March 31, 2008. Utah Opera will offer Rossini’s version of the timeless tale on March 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16, 2008.

The music of Edvard Grieg will be another centerpiece of the festival. The City Library will offer a lecture of his life and music on February, 12, 2008 with a selection of his songs performed by the Utah Opera Ensemble Studio Artists. Then the Utah Symphony will present Grieg’s Piano Concerto on February 14, 15 and 16 and Peer Gynt on February 22 and 23 at Abravanel Hall. Filled with trolls, magic beings and lost loves, Peer Gynt tells a tale spun through music.

For tickets to any of the Utah Symphony or Utah Opera performances, please call 801.533.NOTE (533.6683) or visit www.utahsymphonyopera.org and use promo code “festival” to receive 10% off tickets. Patrons can receive a 50% discount to any of the Utah Symphony or Utah Opera performances mentioned below by presenting their ticket stub from any of the Once Upon A Time Festival events. Coupons for a 50% discount are also available at all partnering organizations.

For more information about the Once Upon a Time Festival, visit: www.utahsymphonyopera.org/festival or call 801.869.9090

GENERAL FAIRY TALE EVENTS:

February 13 (Wednesday) | Cocteau’s Beauty and the Beast | City Library Auditorium | 6:30pm | FREE | Jean Cocteau’s1946 classic film celebrates a love that chooses interior beauty over external repulsiveness.

February 15 – March 1 | Pioneer Theatre’s production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream | Simmons Pioneer Memorial Theatre at the University of Utah | Monday-Thursday 7:30pm; Friday-Saturday 8pm; Saturday 2pm | 801.581.6961 | www.pioneertheatre.org | Tickets: $21-39; Children half-price on Mondays and Tuesdays.

February 19 (Tuesday) | Utah Opera Ensemble: "Once Upon a Time" concert | City Library Auditorium | 7pm | FREE | A magical sonic journey with arias and scenes from operas and musicals based on fairy tales.

February 27 (Wednesday) | Fractured Fairy Tales | City Library Auditorium | 6:30pm | FREE | Hilarious, slightly skewed cartoon retellings of famous fairy tales pulled from the Rocky and Bullwinkle show.

March 13 (Thursday) | Utah Symphony: Ancient Voices of Children | Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center | 8pm | George Crumb’s Ancient Voices of Children pulls its text from the poetry of Federico Garcia Lorca. An appeal to regain the innocence of children, the work is oft described as “hauntingly beautiful.” Tickets: $25, $35.

March 14 (Friday) | Utah Symphony @ BYU: Ancient Voices of Children | Madsen Recital Hall at BYU’s Harris Fine Arts Center | 7:30pm | Tickets: $15 ($7 off for students; $5 off for faculty and seniors) | Call: 801.422.4322 or visit performances.byu.edu

COMPOSER SPOTLIGHT: EDVARD GRIEG
Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg’s fanciful music is perfect for this festival about fairy tales and myths:

February 12 (Tuesday) | Lecture on Life & Music of Edvard Grieg | City Library Auditorium | 7pm | FREE | By Prof. Sue Neimoyer of the University of Utah, with a selection of Grieg’s songs performed by the Utah Opera Ensemble Studio Artists.

February 14 (Thursday) | Utah Symphony Music Exposed Series: Grieg’s Piano Concerto | Abravanel Hall | 7pm | This informal, shorter concert involves a chat with the guest artist and conductor and features Grieg’s Concerto for Piano in A minor. Tickets: $10-$35.

February 15 & 16 (Friday and Saturday) | Utah Symphony: Grieg’s Piano Concerto | Abravanel Hall | 8pm | The evening also includes Béla Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra. Pre-concert lecture begins at 7:15pm in the First Tier Room. Tickets: $12-$48.

February 21 (Thursday) | Utah Symphony @ BYU: Grieg’s Peer Gynt Op. 23 | de Jong Concert at BYU’s Harris Fine Arts Center | 7:30pm | Tickets: $15 ($7 for students; $5 for faculty and seniors) | Call: 801.422.4322

February 22 & 23 (Friday and Saturday) | Utah Symphony: Grieg’s Peer Gynt Op. 23 | Abravanel Hall | 8pm | Grieg’s work is filled with trolls, magic beings, and lost loves in a tale spun through music. Pre-concert lecture begins at 7:15pm in the First Tier Room. Tickets: $12-$48.

THE MANY SLIPPERS OF CINDERELLA:
Delve deep into the Cinderella myth by hearing lectures, taking an online course, viewing an exhibit, attending a ballet, and watching a mini film festival.

Now through March 31, 2008 | Exhibition "Cinderella: Masks, Magic, and Mirrors" | Utah Museum of Fine Arts | Cost: UMFA Members FREE; Adults $5; Seniors $3; Youth (ages 6-18) $3; Children under 6 FREE; University of Utah students, staff and faculty FREE | hours: Tuesday – Friday, 10am – 5pm; Wednesday, 10am – 8pm; Saturday and Sunday, 11 am – 5 pm; closed Mondays and Holidays | 801.581.7332

February 13 – March 5 | OPERA America online course on Rossini’s La Cenerentola (Cinderella) | Rossini, the comic genius responsible for The Barber of Seville, wrote this opera in just three weeks; this course will take four weeks to consider the work's story, music, performance traditions, and productions over the years. Lectures are emailed to participants once each week for four weeks on Wednesdays, allowing you to review the course material at your own pace. Taught by Denise Gallo, a specialist in nineteenth-century Italian opera and Co-Director of the Music History Division at The Catholic University of America.

As a patron of Utah Symphony & Opera, you can have access to the La Cenerentola course free of charge. To register, send an email with your name, street address, and the email address where you would like to receive the course information to pfowler@utahsymphonyopera.org.

February 14-16 and 20-23 | Ballet West's production of Ben Stevenson’s Cinderella | Capitol Theatre | 7:30pm | Receive the $5 “Once Upon a Time” discount on Feb 14-16 and Feb 20 - 21 ONLY. | 801.355.ARTS (2787) | www.balletwest.org

March 1 (Saturday) | Lecture on Cinderella Variants | UMFA Auditorium | 2pm | Utah State University folklore professor Lisa Gabbert will give an hour-long presentation comparing and interpreting Cinderella stories from around the world.

March 5 (Wednesday) | Opera Preview Lecture on Rossini's Cinderella | City Library Auditorium | 7:30pm | By University of Utah School of Music professor April Greenan, who is the founding director of the McKay Music Library at the University of Utah.

March 8 (Saturday) | Cinderella Film Fest | City Library Auditorium | FREE | Four delightful renditions of the Cinderella story set in locations from Africa to Appalachia to Vietnam.
1:00pm | “Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters” (Reading Rainbow, 9 minutes, 1990)
1:15pm | Cinderfella with Jerry Lewis (90 minutes, 1960)
3:00pm | Ashpet: An American Cinderella (Appalachian version, 45 minutes, 1990)
4:00pm | The Scent of Green Papaya (Vietnamese version, 100 minutes, 1993)

March 8, 10, 12, 14 @ 7:30pm and 16 @ 2pm | Utah Opera: Rossini’s La Cenerentola (Cinderella) | Capitol Theatre | Prelude Talk with Dr. Carol Anderson begins one hour before curtain. Friday/Saturday/Sunday tickets: $12-$65 | Monday/Wednesday tickets: $10-$58.


LOCATIONS AND PARTNER INFO:

Abravanel Hall | 123 West South Temple, SLC | 801.533.NOTE (533.6683) | www.utahsymphony.org

Ballet West | Capitol Theatre: 50 West 200 South, SLC | questions: 801.323.9000; tickets: 801.355.ARTS (2787) | www.balletwest.org

Capitol Theatre | 50 West 200 South, SLC | 801.533.NOTE (6683) | www.utahopera.org

The City Library | 210 East 400 South, SLC | 801.524.8200 | www.slcpl.lib.ut.us

SLC Film Center | shows @ City Library Auditorium | 210 East 400 South, SLC | 801.746.7000 | www.slcfilmcenter.org

Pioneer Theatre Company | Simmons Pioneer Memorial Theatre at the University of Utah | 300 South 1400 East, SLC | 801.581.6961 | www.pioneertheatre.org

Utah Humanities Council | 202 W 300 N, SLC | 801.359.9670 | www.utahhumanities.org

Utah Museum of Fine Arts | Marcia & John Price Museum Building @ the University of Utah | 410 Campus Center Drive, SLC | 801.581.7332 | www.umfa.utah.edu

The Once Upon a Time festival is sponsored by the John and Marcia Price Family Foundation.

Location: Various locations in Downtown SLC