Des Moines Metro Opera

09/05/2026

Dandini Dragon knows the office rules: any food left on the counter is fair game 🥧🐲

Don't miss your chance to create your own snacking puppet at this year's Des Moines Symphony Pops Concert! We'll have our own DMMO booth during their Family Festival beginning at 4:00 pm, where guests can craft their own opera puppet.

Be sure to stick around after the family festival fun for the 5:30 pm concert featuring movie music that the whole family can enjoy.

We hope to see you there!

09/04/2026

For one night only, DMMO will fill Water Works Park with some of opera's most iconic melodies at our first-ever Opera in the Park!

This free public event will take place Sept. 17 at 6:30 pm with a screening of our 2023 production of Bizet's CARMEN, originally filmed for broadcast by Iowa PBS. Following the free-spirited Carmen, who lives boldly in her pursuit of freedom, she encounters the soldier Don José as they begin a passionate affair. However, the story takes a turn for the worse when the charismatic bullfighter Escamillo catches Carmen's eye.

It's a night of romance, intrigue, and obsession, so grab a lawn chair or picnic blanket as CARMEN takes the big screen!

To learn more and RSVP, visit:
https://desmoinesmetroopera.org/operainthepark/

09/01/2026

Grab your lawn chairs and blankets—we're bringing opera to Water Works Park! 🧺🎶

Presented in partnership with the Water Works Foundation and Iowa PBS, the inaugural Opera in the Park invites longtime opera fans and curious newcomers alike to experience one of the world's most beloved operas under the stars. We're thrilled to present Iowa PBS's Upper Midwest Regional Emmy® Award-winning broadcast of our 2023 production of Bizet's CARMEN.

This free public event will be held Sept. 17 at the Lauridsen Amphitheater within Water Works Park. The CARMEN screening will begin at 6:30 pm, with food trucks, the Des Moines Biergarten, and a special opera preview beginning 30 minutes prior.

Learn more: https://desmoinesmetroopera.org/operainthepark/

08/26/2026

Thank you to Oliver Camacho of Opera Box Score for this in-depth podcast chronicling a full weekend at our 2026 Festival! Oliver got the full DMMO experience, attending all three operas, the Prelude Talks, and our annual Stars of Tomorrow concert.

"Oops! All About Des Moines Metro Opera" features conversations with soprano Laura Wilde, who starred in the title role of TOSCA, our own Director of Artistic Administration Allen Perriello, and nine of our 2026 apprentice artists.

Listen to the full episode and relive Oliver's DMMO Festival weekend at the link below!

Take a Free Throw on the company's exceptional Apprentice Artist Program. Then, go Inside the Huddle with soprano Laura Wilde, the star of DMMO's Tosca.

08/24/2026

"Thank you for calling Des Moines Metro Opera. This is Carmen Cat. How may I help you?" 📞😸

We created a purr-fect new addition for our box office, and you can too! DMMO will have our own booth at the Des Moines Symphony Water Works Pops: Cinematic Magic - Family Festival and Concert on Sept. 6, where you can make your own opera puppet. The family festival opens at 4:00 pm and features a variety of fun activities.

Stick around, because the concert begins at 5:30 pm with music from classic family movies you'll know and love.

We hope to see you there!

08/21/2026

“One of the most thrilling evenings I’ve ever spent at the opera.… It seems to me little less than miraculous, given the material, that they made KING ROGER dramatically compelling—not just credible, but moving, edge-of-your-seat exciting; at least once in each act I had literal gooseflesh.”

Our sincere thanks to acclaimed novelist and essayist Garth Greenwell—author of "What Belongs to You", "Cleanness", and "Small Rain"—for joining us in Indianola this summer and for sharing such a thoughtful reflection on our KING ROGER in his substack, "To a Green Thought."

"As Roger sang his hymn to the sun, behind him an old theatrical technology worked its absolute, perfect magic. Very slowly, from the water-covered stage, a backdrop ascended, on it the brilliantly lit half circle of a rising sun. I will never forget it.”

Read the full article with the link below!

A daringly sexy and inventive King Roger at the Des Moines Metro Opera

08/20/2026

Experience cinematic magic! We’re joining the Des Moines Symphony on Sunday, September 6, for Water Works Pops: Cinematic Magic - Family Festival and Concert.

Make sure to visit the DMMO booth prior to the concert to create your own opera puppet! Festivities begin at 4:00 pm, with the concert starting at 5:30 pm.

We hope to see you there!

08/04/2026

The 2026 Summer Festival may be over, but the memories can last a lifetime!

Check out the Opera Boutique digital shop to get all your Des Moines Metro Opera merch. Including 2026 Season posters and mugs; only available while supplies last!

To shop the full Opera Boutique, visit bit.ly/OperaBoutique

07/30/2026

Applications are open for DMMO's 2027 Frank R. Brownell III Apprentice Artist Program and OPERA Iowa touring troupe!

See our full list of audition deadlines and locations at www.desmoinesmetroopera.org/auditions/

📸 Photo by Cory Weaver

07/29/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined us for the 2026 Festival Season!

To give our staff some well-deserved time off, the DMMO administrative office and Box Office will be closed on Friday, July 31, and each Friday in August: August 7, 14, 21, and 28.

Throughout August, the Box Office will be available Monday through Thursday from 10:00 am to 4:30 pm at (515) 209-3257. You may also order subscriptions or individual ticket reservations for the 2027 Festival Season anytime at https://desmoinesmetroopera.org/tickets/.