As we look forward to the upcoming An All-Star Concert taping later this season, we are highlighting one of the four singing artists: bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green, the subject of the book Sing For Your Life: A Story of Race, Music, and Family by Daniel Bergner.
In an interview from 2017, Green remembers what so strongly drew him, a rough kid in and out of juvenile detention, to opera – catching a school performance of Carmen at the Met, starring mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves. “Seeing a person who looked like me on stage and meeting her made it tangible for a young kid like me,” he said. “I told [my teacher] Mr. Brown, ‘I know what I want to do with my life. I want to sing at the Met. Not just any opera house but the Metropolitan Opera House.’ That was the first time I ever had a dream.”
This extraordinary dream-becoming-reality is just the beginning of the story. Austin Opera is thrilled to welcome Mr. Green and Mr. Bergner on Friday, January 22 for an exceptional episode of Live from Indy Terrace: a live interactive interview broadcast moderated by Austin Opera General Director & CEO Annie Burridge! Learn how music transformed Ryan Speedo Green’s life from a lost kid into a celebrated international talent. The broadcast will stream on Austin Opera’s YouTube and Facebook pages at 2:30 P.M. CT. where you will have the opportunity to ask questions of your own!
We welcome you to pick up a copy of Sing For Your Life: A Story of Race, Music, and Family by Daniel Bergner from local bookseller Black Pearl Bookstore, our partner on this event. Austin Opera will offer a limited number for free, and will soon announce how you can pick up a free copy! Black Pearl Bookstore is located inside Ten Thousand Villages at 4803 Burnet Road.
