San Francisco Opera 91st Opening Night Gala September 6

San Francisco Opera celebrates the opening of its 91st season on September 6, 2013 with a gala opening night like none other.

San Francisco Opera Guild’s 2013 Opera Ball: The Garden of Good and Evil will be created by celebrity event designer Colin Cowie to reflect the celestial and devilish themes of the evening’s performance––late 19th-century Italian composer Arrigo Boito’s Mephistopheles.  

Opera Ball 2013: The Garden of Good and Evil begins with a pre-performance cocktail reception in the North Light Court of San Francisco’s historic City Hall at 5 p.m., created to mirror the spectacular production of Mephistopheles. An indulgent dinner created by acclaimed chef Lucas Schoemaker of McCalls Catering and Events follows at 6 p.m. in the Beaux-Arts style rotunda, and at 8 p.m. the curtain rises on the gala opening night performance of Mephistopheles at the War Memorial Opera House.  Returning to City Hall following the performance, guests will experience decadent cocktails, desserts and dancing in an atmosphere dramatically transformed into an exotic sanctuary full of diabolical surprises. San Francisco Opera’s opening night festivities will take place at City Hall this year due to the closure of the War Memorial Veterans Building and War Memorial Campus for seismic retrofit and renovations.

Colin Cowie is one of the most recognizable and sought-after event planners in the industry. A regular contributor to NBC’s The Today Show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show and popular personality on HSN with home and lifestyle collections, Cowie is known for his stunning celebrity weddings, Grammy Awards and Oscar Awards parties and luxury hotel openings and other high profile celebrations around the world.

“I am so excited to be part of this year’s San Francisco Opera season opening,” stated Colin Cowie. “We are working with a fun and edgy theme, The Garden of Good and Evil, where our guests will experience the Garden of Good for cocktails and dinner, and the Garden of Evil for the post opera festivities. As opera is such a wonderful contribution to our musical culture, I am thrilled to be a part of this very special event. We promise a fun and fabulous night!”

Always a highlight of the City’s cultural and philanthropic season, Opera Ball is an extraordinary event that brings together local and national corporate, political, civic and philanthropic leaders. The proceeds from this event support San Francisco Opera’s and San Francisco Opera Guild’s award-winning education and community programs throughout the Bay Area. Opera Ball 2013 is co-chaired by Ann Girard and Mai Shiver; Karen Kubin is president of San Francisco Opera Guild.