Highlights of the 2007-8 Season
Summary of Volunteer Activity
Number of active volunteers - 166
Number of volunteer hours - 8.200+
Number of miles traveled - 38,700+
Attendees at outreach events - 817
Events
Fall Awards Brunch – Fall Awards Brunch – At the annual Fall Awards Brunch (chaired by Neil Hershey and Amanda Martin), Guild members and friends joined the Guild in honoring Jo Lyday as Volunteer of the Year. The Volunteers of Distinction were Jane Egner, Wendy and Neil Nershey, Maria Koegel, Allan MacKinnon, and Janet Sims and Janet Upole. Diane Zola received the Bravo Award for professional excellence, and Continental Airlines received the Crescendo Award for corporate support.
Puttin on the Glitz Spring Event – Kathy Moore and Ann Koster chaired this year’s spring event which was held at the Majestic Metro. The event featured a talent contest, performances by HGO Studio artists, and a silent auction.
Support for HGO Art Car – The Guild underwrote the cost of the vehicle used for HGO’s entry in the Art Car Parade. In addition to financial support, several Guild volunteers helped HGO’s talented technical staff build the car. The car was a big hit in the parade and was awarded a first place trophy.
Underwriting of The Refuge at Miller Outdoor Theater – For the fourth year, the Houston Grand Opera Guild was an underwriter of HGO’s production at the Miller Outdoor Theater. In conjunction with the event, Pat Guittard organized an “indoor picnic” before the Friday performance.
Volunteer Gathering – Kathy Moore organized the annual Volunteer Gathering where Guild members and prospective members were able to sign up for Guild activities in the coming season. Sandra Bernhard gave a presentation about HGOco and how the Guild can support this new program. At this year’s event, Rising Star Awards were given to Gerry Aitken and Asad Jafari for significant contributions in their first year of active volunteering with the Guild.
Continuing Programs
Theatre District Open House – Guild volunteers supported the open house with tours of the Wortham Center, a special children’s area, and by providing photos with “Mozart” for attendees. Mary Hanks coordinated the development of a new approach for conducting the tours. Instead of having escorted tours, a self-guided tour route was set up with volunteers at points of interest. This greatly reduced the number of volunteers required. Over 500 people took the tour.
Artist Hospitality Support for The Refuge – With less than 10 days notice, Mary Hanks coordinated 10 volunteers who helped out backstage during the piano tech, dress rehearsal, and both performances of The Refuge. These volunteers assisted with check-in, escorted artists from their dressing rooms to the rehearsal room and stage, helped with costume fittings, served refreshments, delivered messages, directed parking, and transported equipment. In addition to providing emotional support and guidance to the artists, many of whom had never participated in a major production, the volunteers demonstrated significant initiative in identifying and resolving problems that would otherwise have demanded a staff member’s time and attention.
Artist Hospitality Hosted Luncheon for the Technicians – As part of the Guild’s Artist Hospitality Program, Janet Sims and Janet Upole organized the first luncheon to recognize the significant contributions of the backstage technicians to the success of the company.
Studio Buddies Publish Newsletter – Asad Jafari published the Studio Buddies Newsletter. The well written and very entertaining newsletter included articles about current studio activities and news from studio alumni. The newsletter will be published twice a year.
Studio Buddies Host Tour of Houston Ship Channel for Artists - In October, the HGO Guild Studio Buddies took the Studio artists for a 90-minute tour of the Houston Ship Channel and the Port of Houston. Before the tour started the guests were treated to a serenade by a full Mexican mariachi band. On the boat a delicious Mexican dinner was served and our Studio artists got to see one of the largest ports in the world.
Artist in Residence Performances – Jo Lyday coordinated performances by HGO Studio artists for eight community organizations, attended by approximately 280 individuals. This year’s performances were in such diverse places as the Methodist Hospital, the Jewish Community Center, and the Texas Department of Aging and Disability.
Opera Night Live! – Opera Night Live! events were organized by Alice Gates for the Fall, Winter, and Spring Reps. Each event featured studio artists and a preview of an upcoming opera. A total of 261 people attended these events which were put on in conjunction with KUHF.
HGO Guild Boutique – The Boutique Team (Steve Brenner, Jerry Bohannon, Sylvia Carroll, Maria Koegel, and Allan MacKinnon) continued to reduce inventory this year. Their efforts were so successful that we did not need to have a clearance sale at the end of the season.
