Opera Club of The Villages
Our mission is to inspire lifelong interest and encouragement in opera and classical music, and to promote music education for students, including financial support.
Proud sponsor of the Harold S. Schwartz Music Scholarship Program
June 2023 - Final Board Meeting
Held at the home of Kirsti Booker and William Peck residents of the Village of Palo Alto.
First Row [L-R]: Gigi Letendre [Sunshine & Raffle coordinator] Pearl Kosa [Scholarship Chair] Robin Messenheimer [Membership Chair] Roy Ullrich [Newsletter]
Second Row [L-R]: Ian Walmsley [Treasurer] Marlene Croft [Hospitality] Mary Boczkowski [Director-at-Large] Gerri Piscitelli [President] Maestro Bill Doherty [Program Director] Ann Forrester [Recording Secretary] Geri Dempsey [Vice President] Marty Taylor [Scholarship Consultant] William Peck [Website/Marketing]
Third Row: Bill Penix [Publicity]
May 2023 Opera Club Meeting
Last Meeting of the Season
VOICES OF SPRING
David Ghering, Maestro Bill Doherty, Mari Angel Cesstari and Alex Spears
March 2023 Opera Club Meeting
Program- Gilbert & Sullivan
Soprano, Angela Jonas. Maestro Bill Doherty at the piano.
David Ghering and Angela Jonas accompanied by Bill Doherty
Soprano, Elise Curran coordinated a quiz on Gilbert and Sullivan selections .Elise, Bill Doherty and David Ghering featured
THREE TENORS Plus ONE CONCERT [February 11, 2023]
Devin Eatmon, Maestro Bill Doherty, Ashley Thunder, John McVeigh, Fernando Varella
Meet The Opera Club
The Opera Club of The Villages was established to present live musical performances, operas, and concerts to Villagers. Meetings are held the fourth Thursday of each month at Laurel Manor Recreation Center from September through May. In 1997, the Opera Club founded the Harold S. Schwartz Music Scholarship Program to honor the founder of The Villages. The goal was to encourage and support students who plan a career in music by awarding scholarships to applicants in Marion, Lake and Sumter Counties. Over $600,000 in scholarship money has been awarded to 95 students. Our major source of income is our “Three Tenors Plus One” concert scheduled for February 11, 2023 to be presented at The Sharon Performing Arts Center.
During the school year, our Scholarship Committee sends applications to schools in the Tri-County area. Students applying must be seniors with a minimum grade point average of 3.0. They must be planning to major or minor in music education or performance in college. The student must complete the application and submit it with two letters of recommendation. In the past, qualified applicants were invited to audition in April at Laurel Manor. Scholarship auditions are adjudicated by professional judges.
In 2022, 4 Scholarships, valued at up to $12,000, $10,000, $8,000 and $4,000 were awarded. Four Study Grant awards of $1,000 each were also awarded. Listen to the winners HERE....
The Oscar Feliu Award is given annually to a student at The Villages Charter High School who consistently demonstrated outstanding contributions to and participation in the music program. The $3,000 award is in memory of Oscar Feliu, one of the founders of the Opera Club.
The Opera Club of the Villages is a 501(c)(3) Corporation
Mailing address : PO Box 1228, The Villages ,Fl 32158
Learn more by visiting our Support Us page.