"Opera is when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of bleeding, he sings." - Ed Gardner

Books to read before you go …
Opera for Dummies by David Pogue
MT95 .P68 1997

Opera: The Rough Guide by Matthew Boyden
ML102.06 B69 1999x

The Random House Book of Opera Stories by Adele Geras
MT95 .G47 1998

A Young Person's Guide to Music by Neil Ardley: A look at the music behind the operas.
MT6.A73 Y68 1995

Composers who wrote operas…
Great Composers by Stuart A. Kallen
ML3929 .K35 2000

Listening Out Loud: Becoming a Composer by Elizabeth Swados
MT40 .S98 1998

Ludwig van Beethoven: Composer by Dynise Balcavage
ML3930 .B4 B35 1997x

Women Music Makers: An Introduction to Women Composers by Janet Nichols
ML3929.N5 1992

Opera singers ...
Marian Anderson: Singer and Humanitarian by Andrea Broadwater
ML3930.A5 B76 2000

Placido Domingo: Opera Superstar by David Goodnough
ML3930.D6 G66 1997

The Song of the Lark by Willa Cather. A young Midwestern women's journey to opera stardom.
Fiction

A Look Backstage …
Period Make-up for the Stage: Step-by-Step by Rosemarie Swinfield
PN2068 .S89 1997x

Stage Costume: Step-by-Step by Mary T. Kidd
PN2067 .K54 1996x

Stagecraft 1: A Complete Guide to Backstage Work by William H. Lord
PN2091 .S8 L6 2000

Websites …
The Gilbert and Sullivan Archive: Light opera at its best.
http://diamond.boisestate.edu/gas/

Honoria in Ciberspazio: The first Internet opera.
http://www.cyberopera.com

Online Classics: Webcasts of performances.
http://www.onlineclassics.com

OperaGlass: Answers to your opera questions.
http://rick.stanford.edu/opera.main.html

The Opera-hater's Guide to Opera: For dubious first-time opera-goers.
http://www.wrkf.org/opera_hater_1.htm

"Opera is like an oyster; it must be swallowed whole or not at all." -Spike Hughes and Barbara McFadyean

Opera performances …
Videos…
Aida/Guiseppe Verdi: Trickery and betrayal in ancient Egypt.
AD MUSIC AIDA

Don Giovanni/Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: The roving Don Juan meets his match.
AD SERIES DON-GIOVA

Lohengrin/Richard Wagner: A mysterious knight comes to the aid of a damsel in distress.
AD MUSIC LOHENGRIN

Madama Butterfly/Giacomo Puccini: A Japanese geisha's tragic love for an American naval officer.
AD MUSIC BUTTERFLY

Recordings…
Cosi Fan Tutte/Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Two soldiers test their fiancées' faithfulness.
M1500.M93 C6

Einstein on the Beach/Philip Glass: A very modern opera from the master of minimalism.
M1500.G537 E5

The Mikado/Gilbert and Sullivan: Romantic mismatches and mayhem in old Japan.
1500.S944 M5

Romeo et Juliette/Charles Gounod: Shakespeare's classic love story.
M1500.G71 R6

Compiled by Kathy Kire,
Boston Public Library Young Adults Room, 2002