{"id":445364,"date":"2026-09-23T18:08:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-23T18:08:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/445364\/"},"modified":"2026-09-23T18:08:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T18:08:10","slug":"austin-opera-opens-performance-center-in-southeast-austin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/445364\/","title":{"rendered":"Austin Opera opens performance center in Southeast Austin"},"content":{"rendered":"

Austin Opera is unveiling a new performing arts center this week, ahead of the premiere of its bilingual opera Ofrenda.<\/p>\n

Named after longtime supporters, the Sarah and Ernest Butler Performance Center in Southeast Austin is Austin Opera’s new permanent home. It features a 190-seat theater, four rehearsal rooms, a conference center and indoor and outdoor spaces to host year-round performances. Austin Opera will also allow other arts groups to rent the space.<\/p>\n

\u201cOpening a new venue with a brand-new opera is more than a celebration \u2014 it is a statement about where Austin is going,\u201d Annie Burridge, general director and CEO of Austin Opera, said in a statement. \u201cWe want this building to be filled with music, ideas, artists, audiences and community for generations to come. This is just the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n

The nonprofit launched a $8.5 million campaign for the performance center and said it has raised $6.4 million so far. <\/p>\n

Previously, Austin Opera had been renting space in North Austin and holding performances at the Long Center for Performing Arts. Major performances will still take place at the Long Center, Austin Opera said.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The performance center is named after longtime supporters, Sarah and Ernest Butler. Austin Opera launched a $8.5 million campaign for the center and has raised $6.4 million so far. <\/p>\n

Ofrenda \u2014 written by composer Jorge Sosa and librettist John de los Santos \u2014 is Austin Opera\u2019s first-ever commissioned work. It explores family relationships, cultural memories and Dia de los Muertos traditions through the story of an immigrant mother who is given the power to heal anyone.<\/p>\n

\u201cOfrenda is a story about remembrance, devotion and the power to heal,\u201d Sosa said. \u201cIt is also a story about the sacrifices we make for the people we love and the ways our traditions connect us to those who came before us.\u201d<\/p>\n

The performance opens the opera\u2019s 2026-27 season. It runs Oct. 1-11, during Hispanic Heritage Month.<\/p>\n

The public can check out the new performance center during a free community day<\/a> Saturday. The event will feature live performances and a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The community is also invited to help build a Dia de los Muertos altar.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Austin Opera is unveiling a new performing arts center this week, ahead of the premiere of its bilingual…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":445365,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[153726,132,134,133,153727,3933,153728,153729,135303,10427,153730,27],"class_list":["post-445364","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-austin","tag-annie-burridge","tag-austin","tag-austin-headlines","tag-austin-news","tag-austin-opera","tag-dia-de-los-muertos","tag-john-de-los-santos","tag-jorge-sosa","tag-long-center-for-the-performing-arts","tag-ofrenda","tag-sarah-and-ernest-butler-performance-center","tag-texas"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/445364","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=445364"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/445364\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/445365"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=445364"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=445364"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=445364"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}