Your Impact
Your Generosity Make the Music Sing
Because of you, opera in Colorado is more than a performance—it’s a shared experience. Your generosity fuels every note on stage, every artist behind the scenes, and every person who walks through our doors for the first time. Here’s how your support came to life this season.
Bringing Grand Opera to Life
Your support brought extraordinary opera to the Ellie Caulkins Opera House stage—performances that created joy, sparked connection, and invited audiences to see something of themselves reflected in the stories we shared. From the first rehearsal to the final curtain call, each production is the result of hundreds of artists and artisans working together to make something truly unforgettable.
Producing grand opera is both an artistic and financial undertaking. While ticket revenue plays an important role, it covers only a portion of what it takes to bring these stories to life. The rest is made possible by individual donors and sponsors like you.
Because of your generosity, these powerful operatic stories are not just imagined—they are realized on our stage.
Expanding Access to Opera
Your generosity ensures that opera is not limited by barriers of price, prior experience, or even geography. Through expanded access programs, thousands of people are discovering opera for the very first time—often alongside longtime patrons—creating a more welcoming and vibrant opera community.
Pay What You Wish Tickets
Designed to remove financial barriers, Pay What You Wish tickets allow audiences to experience opera at a price that works for them. What began as a pilot program has grown into a cornerstone of our commitment to access—now offered at every mainstage production.
During our 2025 production of La traviata, these performances welcomed over 200 attendees, with 50% attending Opera Colorado for the very first time. (And we are already seeing them return for more experiences!)
I LOVE THIS PROGRAM! I was so worried to spend the $100+ per ticket to take my child on the Autism spectrum because I had no idea how that was going to go. Though he didn’t quite make it through the whole program, he was absolutely enchanted with the first two acts. The staff was wonderful with him and he sat so well though it—I’m so glad we got to have this experience and I really do believe that there are lots of families like mine who would enjoy this kind of program. Thank you!!
—La traviata Pay What You Wish attendee
Student Dress Rehearsals, Backstage Pass, and Family Day
Because of you, young people don’t just see opera—they experience it from the inside. Through Backstage Pass, student dress rehearsals, and free-admission Family Day, kids and families connect with artists, explore careers in the arts, and encounter live opera in a way that can shape their lives.
In 2025, Opera Colorado welcomed a record number of students to the dress rehearsal of La traviata. Our audience ranged from elementary school students to lifelong learners, and they all had a blast.
We reimagined a Backstage Pass workshop that highlights the many professional careers available in the arts.
“The Backstage Pass Workshop was engaging, the staff connected so well with the students, and the activities were clearly designed with care. This is my third year bringing students to this event, and it continues to be one of my favorites. I hope the program keeps going, because it offers such a rich and meaningful experience for young people.”
—Elementary school teacher, 2025 Fall Backstage pass
We’re proud to report that we reached capacity for our free-admission Family Day performances, where children and families sit on the Ellie Caulkins stage and experience opera up close and personal.
“This was such a fun experience and I can’t afford to take my kids to the opera at full price, so with this being a free event, my kids were able to experience something they wouldn’t have been able to otherwise.”
—Parent, Family Day attendee
Training the Next Generation of Opera Artists
Your support directly shapes the future of opera. Through our Artists in Residence program, Opera Colorado nurtures emerging singers—providing professional training, mentorship, and real-world performance experience.
In the past year alone, Opera Colorado supported and trained 11 emerging artists, each of whom stepped onto the mainstage and into the community, gaining invaluable experience that will carry their careers forward.
These artists don’t just perform—they become ambassadors for opera across Colorado.
“One of the things I love the most when we’re performing for a younger audience is when they start conducting. For whatever reason they want to participate and partake in the music in a physical way. It’s exciting, they start waving their hands and you know there’s a little musician in them waiting to be born”
—Oliver Poveda Zavala, bass-baritone, 2024-25 and 2025-26 Artist in Residence
Hear directly from Dennis Robinson, Jr., Director of Programs and Partnerships, about what makes the Artists in Residence program so special—and how your support makes all the difference.
Thank you for making this possible
Every performance, every student, every artist—and every first-time audience member—is part of the impact you make possible. Your generosity allows Opera Colorado to serve our community joyfully, boldly, and inclusively through stories that sing.
Thank you for making the music come to life—and for ensuring these stories continue to be shared for generations to come.