Aria Of Influence

Local opera fans applaud Metropolitan Opera stars, including Deborah Voigt, Paul Plishka and Marcello Giordani. They give standing ovations to performances of fully staged productions, such as “Madama Butterfly” and “Die Fledermaus,” and they marvel at presentations of operatic concerts and international vocal competitions. And they do it all right here in Vero Beach through the Vero Beach Opera.

What can we say other than “Bravo!” to Vero Beach Opera for making it all possible. And a hearty congratulations on its 30th anniversary.

What started in the late 1980s as a fundraising opera guild to support a nearby opera company has grown into a professional opera company that attracts world-class singers and fills a 1,000-seat auditorium with opera lovers who often admit surprise, along with awe, at the quality of the performances, staging and costumes.

Vero Beach Opera’s mission is compelling and ambitious, and it is fulfilled each year by its all-volunteer board. As chairman of the board Louis Lawson puts it, “We are all A-type personalities who are passionate about opera and willing to follow wholeheartedly our volunteer manager and volunteer artistic director, who have the knowledge, creativity and business acumen to manage a successful operation.”