This summer’s festival will feature two different concert series at beautiful Saratoga venues, with delicious food and drinks.

First, on June 1, Opera Saratoga’s Festival Artists will perform hits from the Great American Songbook at the Mansion of Saratoga.

This concert, entitled “Songs of Travel” features 18 rising star singers who will transport you all around the world with songs and arias while you enjoy the beautiful back deck of the Mansion of Saratoga and a delicious lunch or dinner provided by chef Rick Bieber during the show. Those who purchase elite tickets in the front rows will be treated to a complimentary beverage and a special treat! Swoon to songs from musicals and jazz standards like “On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe,” “The Trolley Song,” “Surrey with a Fringe” and even “Defying Gravity”.

Performances at 12pm and 5pm, house opens 1 hour before for the buffet. Tickets start at $95 with a buffet meal, and premium tickets are $125.

Next, on June 4 and 11, Festival Artists will sing the music that made them want to become singers at the Saratoga Winery

Opera Saratoga has the second oldest young artist training program in the nation!

Catch rising opera singers as they delve deep into who they are in musical portraits of their own making. Each concert features 9 festival artists in their most core repertoire, from operatic arias to cultural songs to their own compositions. June 4th is emceed and coached by Amy Burton, Lake George Opera Festival Artist alumna and Metropolital Opera soprano, returning to Opera Saratoga to mentor the singers. June 11 is emceed and coached by Peter Kazaras, Metropolitan Opera tenor and emeritus director of UCLA’s Herb Alpert School of Music. Join us for two incredible evenings of discovery and musical-soul-searching at the stunning Saratoga Winery, while you enjoy food and beverages.

Performances at 7pm. General admission at $35. Food and drink is extra.

For tickets, visit www.operasaratoga.org or call the Proctors Box Office at 518-346-6204.

Locations:

The Mansion of Saratoga

801 NY 29

Rock City Falls, NY 12863

The Saratoga Winery

462 Ny-29

Saratoga Springs NY 12866

ABOUT OPERA SARATOGA:

Opera Saratoga, formerly known as Lake George Opera, began with a production of Die Fledermaus at the Diamond Point Theatre on July 5, 1962, playing to an audience of 230. The Company now calls Saratoga Springs home and performs for more than 25,000 people annually. Opera Saratoga celebrates its 60th Anniversary this season. The company serves the communities of Saratoga Springs, the Lower Adirondack and New York State Capital areas by providing access to world-class opera through the production of an annual Summer Festival, as well as year-round activities including extensive educational programs, mentorship of emerging operatic artists, and unique opportunities for the public to experience opera in both our home theater and non-traditional venues that leverage and embrace the unique cultural, historic, and natural resources of the area. To date, the company has performed 108 different fully staged works by 69 different composers, including 44 works by American composers and 15 premiere productions. Opera Saratoga’s staff includes General and Artistic Director Mary Birnbaum, Executive Director Amanda Robie and the Head of Music Staff and Festival Artist Program, Laurie Rogers. For more information, visit www.operasaratoga.org.

ABOUT AMY BURTON: Amy Burton has sung with the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, at the

White House, and with major opera companies and orchestras throughout the US, Europe, UK, Japan, Mexico, and Israel. Her discography includes recordings for Bridge, Naxos, Harbinger, Albany, Angel/EMI, Opera America, Sound Mirror, and CRI. Performing frequently in recital and cabaret with composer-pianist John Musto,

she has been a champion of American composers throughout her career. Her awards include prizes from the Gerda Lissner, George London, Sullivan Foundations, the Marian Anderson International Vocal Competition, and three awards from NYCO, including the Diva Award. She received Opera America’s first Artist Advocate

Award. A sought-after teacher, Ms. Burton’s students can be heard at the Met, the opera companies of Frankfurt, Vienna, Bayreuth, Munich, San Francisco, Santa Fe, Zürich, Glyndebourne, and the Dutch National Opera, among others in the US and abroad. She is on the voice faculties of Juilliard, Mannes, and the CUNY Graduate Center,

and maintains a private studio in New York City. For full bio: www.amyburton.com

ABOUT PETER KAZARAS:

Peter Kazaras is a Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Music at The UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music, where he served from 2007-2024 as the Inaugural Director of Opera at UCLA. A stage director and teacher, he was also Artistic Director of the Seattle Opera Young Artists Program from 2006 to 2013. As an operatic tenor, he performed worldwide at The Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin, Vienna State Opera, L’Opéra National de Paris, and other venues. Recent directing assignments have taken him to Washington National Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Seattle Opera, Glimmerglass Festival, The Dallas Opera, the Merola Program at San Francisco Opera, and The Juilliard School. In the summer of 2018, he directed A Quiet Place for Tanglewood as part of the Bernstein Centennial celebration. Just before the pandemic shutdown, he directed a critically acclaimed new production of Samson et Dalila for Washington National Opera. Peter Kazaras has worked on numerous world premieres both as a singer and as a director. At UCLA, he directed, supervised, or produced over fifty productions, including the recent world premiere of The Grand Hotel Tartarus, with music and libretto by Richard Danielpour. A frequent panelist on the Toll Brothers Metropolitan Opera Quiz, Kazaras is also in demand as a judge for competitions, both national and international. He is working on several new operas as librettist, dramaturg, stage director, and producer.

For more about Opera Saratoga’s 2025 season, visit www.operasaratoga.org.

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