Sarasota Opera | One Big Welcoming Family: Katherine Benoit and John Brooks

By Tom Reese | March 2024

When married couple Katherine Benoit and John Brooks decided to retire to the Sarasota area, they knew they had ample opportunities to explore a wide variety of arts and culture. They already loved theater, ballet, and the orchestra—what they didn’t expect was to fall in love with opera. 

After settling into their Lakewood Ranch home, friends encouraged Katherine and John to attend a performance at Sarasota Opera. The performance resonated with them and they began attending shows regularly. As the frequency of enjoying opera rose for Katherine and John, so did their involvement in the organization and the community. 

“When you go to the Sarasota Opera House and walk in the front door for a performance, you’re met by the directors and staff with a very warm welcome,” says Katherine. “They’re happy to answer any questions you might have and guide you around. To me, it feels like we’ve become part of one big family. I’ve never felt that walking into any other venue.” 

Initially they began volunteering for the organization and eventually became donors and co-producers. Official Sarasota Opera co-producers underwrite a substantial portion of the cost of producing the performances. They are immersed in the production process with access to dress rehearsals, receptions with artists, and exclusive artist sponsorship opportunities. Today, Katherine serves as Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees for the Sarasota Opera Association.  

EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS

One of the ways Katherine and John have supported the Sarasota Opera is by sponsoring an apprentice. The Apprentice Artist Program at Sarasota Opera began in 1982 and was designed to help trained singers in the important transition from student to professional life. 

Sarasota Opera provides many performing opportunities throughout its fall and winter seasons for apprentices. The training aspect of the program focuses on encouraging singers to give impassioned performances through vocal expression with an understanding of the meaning of the text, the poetry, and the music. Apprentices attend classes by industry leading experts, coach foreign languages with native born speakers, network with peers, and most importantly, get much needed performance experience. 

“We’ve been sponsoring the apprentice program for about three or four years now,” says John. “It really helps to understand a little bit more about what makes someone want to pursue operatic music as a career and what it takes to succeed. Coming from a long career in the corporate world, seeing young people be successful in the artistic world is really interesting to watch unfold.”

Recently Katherine and John have become more involved in supporting the youth opera. Since 1984, Sarasota Youth Opera has given thousands of kids ages eight to 18 an opportunity to experience the joy of opera firsthand through participation in fully-staged youth opera productions, main stage productions, summer camps, and concerts throughout the community.

Sarasota Youth Opera is the only program in the country committed to presenting an annual full-scale opera production for young voices, as well as accepting everyone regardless of skill level or ability to pay.

“We are so lucky to have the talent we have in the youth opera. Just to go and watch staff work with the kids is an incredible experience. It’s so invigorating to watch them. These are young people that are developing an understanding of the opera and hopefully they’ll get more involved and continue to grow the industry. It’s something we both firmly believe in,” says Katherine. 

Katherine recently purchased a bunch of tickets to the Sarasota Youth Opera to encourage her friends and family to go and experience it for the first time. Just like their experience, many of these people have continued to come back and support the Sarasota Youth Opera and the Sarasota Opera in general. 

“I got about 50 people to visit the youth opera that had never experienced it before. This resulted in many of them becoming supporters and donors. Finding new ways to introduce the opera to the community is something that has particularly interested me,” says Katherine. 

HISTORY OF SARASOTA OPERA

The current home for Sarasota Opera has a very diverse and rich history in Sarasota. Arthur Britton Edwards, the first mayor of Sarasota, unveiled the A.B Edwards Theatre in 1926, a multi-use building designed to house several different forms of entertainment. In 1979, the Asolo Opera Guild purchased the theater and began renovations for it to be a fulltime opera house. The building was finished and opened in 1984 as the Sarasota Opera House, under the company name Sarasota Opera. 

From March 2007 to February 2008, the Sarasota Opera House underwent a complete renovation of the original structure. The interior of the auditorium was gutted to allow the digging of a new larger orchestra pit and overall improvement to sightlines for attendees. New seats and historically appropriate decorations were added to improve the experience. The backstage facilities were updated and the orchestra fitted with a hydraulic lift. The renovations include a restored three-story atrium as well as additional restrooms, lounges, and other audience amenities. 

HOW TO GET INVOLVED

Today you can book tours of the Sarasota Opera House, attend a wide variety of opera performances, attend ticketed special events, and much more. There are several different restaurants and hotels in the area to make the opera a fantastic destination for tourists and visitors. 

The current Winter Season is reaching its end, but you still have time to catch the following performances: Carmen, Lucia di Lammermoor, Luisa Miller, and Deceit Outwitted. The final performance of the season will take place on March 24, 2024. Please visit www.SarasotaOpera.org for tickets and more information. 

There are a wide range of ways to support Sarasota Opera including: individual donations, tribute gifts, costume support, and volunteerism. 

FOR MORE INFORMATION about the benefits and perks of supporting the Sarasota Opera, please visit www.SarasotaOpera.com/support.