CINCINNATI OPERA PRESENTS

6^TH ANNUAL PRIDE NIGHT CELEBRATION

SATURDAY, JUNE 16

Honoring Cathy Crain as the 2012 Dabby Blatt Friend of Diversity

CINCINNATI — Join us on Saturday, June 16 for Cincinnati Opera’s sixth annual Pride Night Celebration, honoring Cincinnati Opera Board Chairman Cathy Crain as the 2012 Dabby Blatt Friend of Diversity. The circus-themed party, which will begin immediately following that evening’s performance of the double bill Pagliacci | Gianni Schicchi, reflects the Opera’s longstanding support of Cincinnati’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) communities. Pride Night celebrates the diversity of Greater Cincinnati, and all are welcome to attend.

This year’s honoree, Cathy Crain, is an iconic supporter in the Cincinnati arts world and beyond. She brings a unique brand of dedicated volunteerism and philanthropy to both the Opera and an array of charitable initiatives, creating a positive ripple effect that reaches from Greater Cincinnati into the international sphere. With her husband Tom, Cathy was a co-founder of the Ohio Innocence Project/Institute for Law and Justice at the University of Cincinnati College of Law. They both sit on the board of the Worldwatch Institute in Washington, D.C. Cathy joined the Cincinnati Opera board of trustees in 1995, and has been a strong advocate for presenting new and lesser-known works such as Dead Man Walking (2002), Margaret Garner (2005), and Ainadamar (2009). She was president of the Opera’s board of trustees from 2006 to 2010, and now acts as its chairman. She is the Chair of the Board of Trustees of Cincinnati State Technical and Community College and is a Cincinnati Parks Commissioner. She also sits on the boards of both the May Festival and Talbert House. She is an unswerving supporter of diversity in all forms, and a valued friend of the Cincinnati LGBT community.

“Cathy Crain is the perfect choice to receive this award,” said Evans Mirageas, The Harry T. Wilks Artistic Director of Cincinnati Opera. “She truly believes in treating every person she meets as an equal, and her candor and goodwill are infectious. The world could use many more Cathy Crains, but I am lucky to count the one and only as a friend.”

The party’s circus theme, which will influence everything from décor and refreshments to entertainment, is inspired by the Opera’s production of Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci, the famous tragedy about a troupe of traveling clowns.

This year’s Pride Night Committee, led by co-chairs Nancy Banks-Sacewicz and Brian L. Tiffany, includes Karen Aronoff-Holtmeier, Dabby Blatt, Frank Caliguri, Heric Flores, Ryan Messer, Jim Reynolds, Joe Rigotti, and Kenneth Wright.

At the 2011 Pride Night Celebration, the first-ever Friend of Diversity Award was given to Dabby Blatt for her longtime support of Cincinnati’s LGBT communities. This year, the award has been renamed in her honor as the Dabby Blatt Friend of Diversity Award.

The 2012 Pride Night Celebration corporate sponsors are Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., Toyota Regional Sales Office, Kroger, Elegant Fare, Klocke Design, Accent on Cincinnati, Sam’s Club, Nationwide, Queen City Cookies, and Ethicon Endo-Surgery. Individual sponsors are Nancy and Jolanta Banks-Sacewicz, Dabby Blatt, Frank Caliguri, Cathy and Tom Crain, Doug Klocke, and Evans Mirageas and Thomas Dreeze.

For more information, please visit www.cincinnatiopera.org.

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Cincinnati Opera presents

6^th Annual Pride Night Celebration

Celebrating Cincinnati Diversity

When: Saturday, June 16, 2012

6:30 p.m. Opera Insights lecture with Evans Mirageas, Corbett Tower

7:30 p.m. Pagliacci | Gianni Schicchi performance, Springer Auditorium

10:30 p.m. Pride Night Celebration, Corbett Tower

Where: Music Hall, 1241 Elm Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202

Admission: Call the Cincinnati Opera Box Office at (513) 241-2742 to order tickets, or to make a donation in honor of Cathy Crain. There are five levels of participation to choose from:

After-Party only: $25 per person
NOTE: Available only for current ticket-holders or those unable to attend the performance

• Admittance to Pride Night Celebration

Attendee Level: $65 per person

• Mid-Gallery level performance ticket to the double bill of Pagliacci | Gianni Schicchi
• Admittance to Pride Night Celebration

Host/Hostess Level: $115 per person

• Mid-Orchestra level performance ticket to the double bill of Pagliacci | Gianni Schicchi
• Admittance to Pride Night Celebration

Friend of Cathy: $250 per person

• Cathy Crain will receive notification of your purchase in her honor
• Mid-Orchestra level performance ticket to the double bill of Pagliacci | Gianni Schicchi
• Admittance to Pride Night Celebration

Friend of the Opera: $500 per person

• Mid-Orchestra level performance ticket to the double bill of Pagliacci | Gianni Schicchi
• Admittance to Pride Night Celebration

The 2012 Pride Night Celebration corporate sponsors are Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., Toyota Regional Sales Office, Kroger, Elegant Fare, Klocke Design, Accent on Cincinnati, Sam’s Club, Nationwide, Queen City Cookies, and Ethicon Endo-Surgery. Individual sponsors are Nancy and Jolanta Banks-Sacewicz, Dabby Blatt, Frank Caliguri, Cathy and Tom Crain, Doug Klocke, and Evans Mirageas and Thomas Dreeze.

Cincinnati Opera’s 2012 Summer Festival will take place June 14 through July 28, featuring a double bill of Ruggero Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci and Giacomo Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, and Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata. Cincinnati Opera’s 2012 Season Presenting Sponsor is PNC. The 2012 season is also made possible with support from ArtsWave, Ohio Arts Council, The Louise Dieterle Nippert Musical Arts Fund, and many generous individuals, corporations, and foundations.

www.cincinnatiopera.org

Click here to view a PDF of the press release.

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