State

GRASS ROOTS OPERA ВЦ JOAY TAYLOR MLXGER l( was 1899 in the sprawling moun¬ tain settlement of North Wilkesboro. N. C, when a 12-year-old boy named Alfred Johnston Fletcher heard a local soprano sing Sicbcl's aria from “Faust." From that experience sprang a life¬ long love of opera which has brought to over 7(K),()(>0 North Carolina school children an introduction to opera by a company of singers which loses money to the tunc of $13,000 a year. Why docs the National Grass Roots Opera Company continue its program, planning this year to play to another 25.000 children? "Because nobody else is doing it. has done it. or promises to do it." says the company founder and guiding spirit. A. J. Fletcher, now a Raleigh attorney and businessman. Fletcher is speaking of the Grass Roots Opera's two purposes. First, most important, to bring opera to so¬ ciety's most receptive group, its chil¬ dren. in language they understand — F.nglish. Second, to give young singers the experience they must have if they arc to succeed in professional careers. Grass Roots Opera has succeeded beyond its dreams, judging by the let¬ ters of appreciation received from school children throughout the state. And Grass Roots singers, having learned stage movement and body con¬ trol, have gone on to singing leads with the Met. New York City Center, Kansas City Lyric Company, the Ham¬ burg. Germany, opera, and profession¬ al companies from Miami to San Fran¬ cisco. Though Fletcher’s love of opera be¬ gan early in life, his determination to share this love actually took form in the mid 40's when he sponsored Clif¬ ford Bair of Winston-Salem to come to Raleigh and direct opera once a year. This grew into the Seaboard Opera Festival for which Fletcher raised the money to hire townspeople and avoca- tional singers for individual perfor¬ mances. On April 12. 1948, Fletcher or¬ ganized a small company of singers and hired its first director, Robert Bird from the Fort Worth Civic Opera Com¬ pany. This group sang operatic excerpts to state music clubs, who also heard Fletcher give 15-minute talks on the virtues of opera in English. Fletcher footed travel expenses, the clubs pro¬ vided meals and lodging. In 1949. Fletcher went back to those same clubs Coii Fon Tulle 1 Moiort) it one of Ihc operos on Ihe notional company's repertoire. A. J. Fletcher uted lo ting in hit opero company. Photo thowt him cotfumed for performance. with a full opera — Mozart's "Cosi Fan Tutte." Then Fletcher realized a formidable obstacle: "In Europe opera is the lan¬ guage of the people, it doesn't just be¬ long to the upper crust. Adults here arc already prejudiced against foreign lan¬ guage opera. I realized I would have to start with the children, get to them while they were impressionable." Fletcher spoke to Clyde Erwin, then superintendent of public instruction, who received him as "the answer to his prayers." remembers Fletcher. Er¬ win encouraged school officials to take advantage of Fletcher’s offer to bring opera in English to the schools — " 'No school too small or too remote,' we promised," says Fletcher. And they ended up in such places as Calypso. Magnolia. Manteo. Murphy, where children had never before seen opera. The school program began in Oc¬ tober, 1951. with a matinee in Rocky Mount. Then, as now. teachers re¬ ceived in advance from the company a wealth of operatic study material to io THE STATE. NOVEMBER 1. 1965