It’s virtual farewell for S.J. opera director
After a 37-year career with Opera San Jose — spanning the company’s entire history — the farewell party for outgoing General Director Larry Hancock should have been, well, operatic. And though the coronavirus and the shelter-in-place order dashed the original plans for an inperson send-off, its virtual replacement was pretty amazing on its own.
Some 300 Opera San Jose supporters raised their glasses in a massive Zoom party May 16, wishing Hancock well in retirement. He joined Opera San Jose as its public relations director when it was founded by Irene Dalis in 1983, and after steadily moving up the ranks he took over for Dalis following her retirement in 2014. His Opera San Jose life could be
summed up in stunning statistics: 151 productions, 1,056 performances and more than 35,000 rehearsals. That’s a lot of arias.
Khori Dastoor, his successor as general director, had high praise for Hancock’s tenure, saying “Through Larry’s leadership, OSJ has established itself as a company that welcomes audiences from every walk of life — from all levels of education, socioeconomic background and financial means. I am committed to continuing Larry’s legacy of making our company accessible to all.”
The farewell event also served to launch Opera San Jose’s annual fundraiser, which is offering donors some truly rare opera-related experiences, including having a private aria performed from your front porch or having a digital birthday song sent to a loved one. And as a sign of the times, all donors will get a colorful face mask handmade by Opera San Jose’s costume department. The fundraiser runs through June 30 and you can find out more at operasj.org/ virtual-paddle-raise.
SVCREATES HONORS ARTISTS >> Congratulations — even the virtual kind — are due to the newest class of Silicon Valley Creates artist laureates and Content magazine emerging artist award recipients. This year’s creative crew of laureates consists of actor, playwright and director Rodrigo Garica, the artistic director for Teatro Vision; printmaker Fanny Retsek, the adult studies program director at the Palo Alto Art Center; and printmaker Dana Harris Seeger, co-founder of the School of Visual Philosophy.
This year’s Content Magazine Emerging Artist awards are going to saxophone player Oscar Pangilinan and muralist Harumo Sato (whose name you might recognize as a recipient of the Leigh Weimers Emerging Artist Award last fall). They’ll all be recognized at Content’s next virtual event June 23. Go to svcreates.org/svlaureate-program for more information.
LET’S GET VIRTUAL >> Like many Santa Clara County nonprofits, Valle Monte League has had its calendar thrown into disarray because of coronavirus concerns. The annual Christmas Tree Elegance event in December, its primary fundraiser for the past 51 years, has been canceled, and the group’s board of directors is working on plans for replacements to fulfill its commitment to the mental health agencies it supports.
The first one is a 10day Virtual 10K walk that started May 21 and wraps up Sunday to commemorate Mental Health Awareness Month. You can register to walk the 10K (6.2 miles) wherever you like and in however many segments you like before the event ends — or support another walker with a pledge. Get more information at vallemonte.org/virtual-walk.
THE BANDS PLAY ON >> With no Music in the Park concerts planned for this summer, the San Jose Downtown Association has been rekindling fond memories of past performances with its Music in the Park Showdown.
The contest started with a bracket of 32 acts (out of the 236 that have played the series since its 1989 start) and whittled it down, based on votes cast on the Downtown Association’s Instagram and Facebook pages.
Every time someone comments, he’s entered into a drawing for VIP tickets to every concert in the 2021 series.
The “elite eight” matchups announced last week were J Boog vs. Eek-AMouse, Flogging Molly vs. Brenton Wood, Third World vs. WAR and Tower of Power vs. Ozomatli.
The final four will be announced today, and I’ve got to think Tower of Power/Ozomatli’s going to be a nail-biter.
Check it out at sjdowntown.com/music-in-thepark.