Student Night at the Opera
Student Night at the Opera
Introduce Your Students to the Magical World of Opera.
Students and youth organizations in grades three through twelve are invited to attend the final dress rehearsal of San Diego Opera productions — at no charge. All performances are at the San Diego Civic Theatre.
- School and group leaders receive a study guide on each opera and must attend a virtual workshop. The operas are sung in their original language with English and Spanish translations projected above the stage.
- Group size: minimum of ten (with no more than two adults) and maximum of 60 (with at least one chaperone for every ten students)
- Title 1 schools or organizations located in Title 1 neighborhoods may apply for bus reimbursement of up to $500.
- Advance registration is required.
- Not all operas are suitable for all ages. Unless otherwise noted, operas are suitable for students in grades 3-12.
Upcoming Student Nights at the Opera:
Rigoletto, Wednesday, October 21, 2026
6:30 – 9:00 pm
Susannah, Wednesday, February 10, 2027
6:30 – 8:30 pm
The Marriage of Figaro, Wednesday, March 31, 2027
6:30 – 9:45 pm
Check back for the ticket request launch later this summer!
For more information, email us at Educate@sdopera.org or call (619) 533-7000.
Student Night at the Opera is generously supported by the City of San Diego, the Prebys Foundation, Elisabeth Crouch, the David C. Copley Foundation, the Ellen Browning Scripps Foundation, and the many individual donors who care about introducing the next generation of opera lovers to this art form. Carmen Student Night at the Opera is supported by University of San Diego.
Rigoletto
By Giuseppe Verdi
Sung in Italian with English and Spanish translations projected above the stage.
Wednesday, October 21, 2026
6:30 – 9:00 pm (estimated 2.5 hours running time)
For Grades 4-12 and chaperones
Making jokes is what Rigoletto does for a living, serving as court jester to the predatory Duke of Mantua. But the joke may be on him when one of his jests enrages Count Monterone, the father of the Duke’s latest victim, unleashing a curse with dangerous consequences for Rigoletto and his beautiful daughter Gilda.
Packed with spectacular arias like “La donna è mobile,” “Caro nome,” and the stunning quartet “Bella figlia dell’amore,” Verdi’s sublime tale of betrayal, sacrifice, and revenge will hold you spellbound from start
to finish.
Susannah
By Carlisle Floyd
Sung in English with English and Spanish text projected above the stage.
Wednesday, February 10, 2027
6:30 – 8:30 pm (estimated 2 hour running time)
For students in grades 6-12 and chaperones
Eighteen-year-old Susannah Polk lives with her brother Sam in the woods outside a Tennessee mountain town. When local churchmen spot her bathing in an isolated creek, she becomes the target of gossip, accusations, and worse.
Carlisle Floyd transplants the biblical “Susannah and the Elders” to the Appalachian backwoods in this modern classic: a riveting tale of sex, corruption, and hypocrisy with a folk-inspired score and the beloved aria “Ain’t it a pretty night?” Floyd’s centenary is the perfect time to experience the opera Gramophone calls “an important work within modern American opera” and Opera Today dubs the “operatic equivalent of Arthur Miller’s The Crucible.”
The Marriage of Figaro
By Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Sung in Italian with English and Spanish text projected above the stage.
Wednesday, March 31, 2027
6:30 – 9:45 pm (estimated 3 hour and 15 minute running time)
For students in grades 4-12 and chaperones
Remember the barber of Seville? Figaro is back — and he’s getting married! But there are complications. His bride-to-be doesn’t want their room too close to their lecherous boss, Count Almaviva, who wants to revive the ancient practice of collecting “noble privileges” on a wedding night. But Figaro has some tricks up his sleeve to teach the Count a lesson.
Visit the Almaviva estate for one madcap day filled with disguises, desire, deception – even forgiveness – as Mozart’s masterpiece unfolds with musical delights that have enchanted audiences
for centuries.
Transportation Reimbursement
- Reimbursement of up to $500 from San Diego Opera is only available for Title 1 schools and groups located in Title 1 school neighborhoods.
- Schools and groups must schedule their own buses.
- Schools in districts that provide school buses must use those district buses. San Diego Opera is not able to reimburse schools with access to school district buses for charter bus expenses.
- You should only schedule a bus after you have been informed about the status of your ticket request.
- Within 30 days of attending Student Night, please invoice San Diego Opera directly (the maximum invoice amount is $500) by submitting an electronic invoice to educate@sdopera.org
- Each invoice must be addressed to San Diego Opera, identify the school or group, include the date of the Student Night, and bill San Diego Opera specifically for the amount due.
This program is limited to K-12 public and private schools and youth groups from nonprofit organizations or government agencies only. A minimum of ten people per group, including no more than two chaperones, is required.
For more information, contact (619) 533-7000 or email educate@sdopera.org
Student Night at the Opera is generously supported by the City of San Diego, the Prebys Foundation, Elisabeth Crouch, the Ellen Browning Scripps Foundation, and the many individual donors who care about introducing the next generation of opera lovers to this art form.
Corporate Sponsors
