By Julie Todaro, Young Patronesses of the Opera Since 1975, the Young Patronesses of the Opera (YPO) has been presenting children’s operas to school children in Miami-Dade County. For over 30 years, YPO has worked with the Miami-Dade County school system to present these professional children’s operas to over 30,000 school children annually. The students learn about the opera art form and theater etiquette as well as enhancing their reading, comprehension and literary skills while working with their Opera Funtime booklets. This learning guide tells the story of the opera, includes songs, features games and puzzles.

Through Miami-Dade County Public Schools’ Cultural Passport program, nearly 2,000 3^rd  grade students attended Little Red Riding Hood by Seymour Barab at the Joseph Caleb Auditorium in Miami. In this version, Little Red Riding Hood and her grandmother are able to defeat the Wolf with the mentioning of things that make him sick to his stomach such as candy, cakes and strawberries. There is great humor and excitement and the children were fully engaged throughout the performance. And, as with every fairytale, there is a moral at the end to always listen to their mother and never talk to strangers. After the performance, the children have a chance to ask the professional opera singers questions about their background, schooling, dedication to their craft, the art form of opera and their characters.

For more information about YPO and our In-School Opera program, visit our website at: www.YPO-Miami.org.