Opera in the Schools(OITS)
Opera In The Schools (OITS) - 38th Season
West Bay Opera’s Opera In The Schools (OITS) program has been raising awareness about opera among grade-school children since 1984. Each year, the OITS cast performs in 15 to 25 grade schools, reaching nearly 10,000 children. Participating OITS schools are located throughout the San Francisco Peninsula and South Bay, from Daly City to the north to as far south as Santa Cruz.
Illustration: The Magic Flute dragon - by Brandon. South School - Hillsborough - 2018
How it works
OITS singers perform a standard-repertoire opera, in English translation, abridged and adapted for children. Our adaptations include opportunities for some of the children to participate in the productions, either as chorus singers, actors, or as stage hands.
Participating schools receive preparatory materials well in advance of the performance. Teachers use these materials to prepare the chorus and help the children learn their acting parts, and also to enhance the children's understanding of the genre and of the particular work we are presenting.
This contributes to the children's appreciation of the genre and to their enjoyment of the production. For some of them, this first exposure can be the start of a very rewarding life-long relationship with opera.
To see the types of materials we make available to teachers, click on the link below.
Illustration: Thank you card from Fiona - South School, Hillsborough, CA. After our Magic Flute Performance - 2018
The Magic Flute
by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
The 2022-2023 OITS season will feature a special adaptation of Mozart's opera
The Magic Flute
Don't Wait to Schedule a Performance!
Donations from private donors and foundations enable us to subsidize the cost of our program to the schools. Each season, the subsidized fees are offered on a first-come, first-served basis , until subsidy funds are exhausted. We encourage you to contact us as soon as possible (August/September) to reserve your performance date and secure the lower fees.
The subsidized fees are $700 for a single performance and $900 for two consecutive performances on the same morning.*
Photo: Otak Jump - WBO's Pikovaya Dama production - 2006-07 Season
* Even after the subsidies are exhausted we are still able to schedule performances, but the school must bear the entire fee.
Schedule a performance
Our productions are made possible, in part, by the generous support of our key partners:
