Opera for Laughs: Great Comic Moments in the World of Opera

Opera for Laughs: Great Comic Moments in the World of Opera

Clifford "Kip" Cranna
Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM (PT)
Repeats every Thursday until Thursday, Mar. 7, 2024
Price: $155.00
94 slots available
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"Make 'em laugh!" Opera is not always about tragic dying divas. Humor is one of the great human emotions, especially needed in these trying times. San Francisco Opera's Dramaturg Emeritus (Scholar in Residence) Kip Cranna looks at what makes comic opera truly funny, exploring the composer's role in giving comedy its spark, using video examples (with subtitles) of operatic humor from the 17th century to the present day. Come prepared to interact, ask questions, and laugh!

Faculty Bio

Kip Cranna is Dramaturg Emeritus (Scholar in Residence) at San Francisco Opera, where he served on the staff for 40 years. He has a Ph.D. in Musicology from Stanford, and teaches at various learning institutes in the Bay Area.

This is an In-Person + Recorded Course

  • Classes will be held in person at the Lafayette Library and Learning Center (Community Hall) at 3491 Mt. Diablo Blvd., Lafayette
  • Classes will also stream live simultaneously and be video recorded
  • Please note: Due to copyright restrictions, some songs and video clips may be edited out of the final recording
  • You must be a current OLLI @Berkeley member to register. Learn about membership, including our fee assistance program.

Schedule Highlights

  • Course starts on Thursday, Feb. 15 and ends on Thursday, March 7
  • Classes meet for four weeks, two hours per session (1–3 PM)
  • Videos will post on Fridays in Member Dashboards
  • Course materials, including videos, will remain available to view and enjoy through March 31

Member Praise for Kip Cranna

Kip's an expert and appealing instructor, able and available to respond to all kinds of questions and comments, has excellent materials and works well with them on Zoom. Content of this course was excellent — not your usual opera course (great as those can be).

This is the second course I've taken with Kip. His experiential familiarity with the composers, singers and dramaturgy, together with his conversational demeanor, make the material fascinating and accessible. He is terrific.

Syllabus