# Event Details - **Event Name**: I Hear America Singing: American Opera in the Mid-20th Century - **Event Start and End Date**: Thu, 09 Jul, 2026 at 01:00 pm – Thu, 09 Jul, 2026 at 02:00 pm (-07:00) - **Event Description**: American opera came into its own in the mid-1900s. We'll explore how American composers created a markedly new operatic style.About this EventAmerican opera composers followed European models at first, but by the 1930’s they began striking out in new directions, giving home-grown opera a distinctly modern character. Their deliberate tunefulness and dramatic directness often earned critical ridicule for their supposed lack of European modernism and dissonant compositional daring. But the growing canon of distinguished American operas has now earned the loyal appreciation of devoted audiences unphased by the scorn of academia or the snobbery of critics. Using video illustrations, San Francisco Opera’s Dramaturg (Scholar in Residence) Emeritus Kip Cranna will explore American opera from the 1930’s through the 1970s, including the ground-breaking, decidedly American work of influential composers, many of whom were of Jewish background, George Gershwin, Virgin Thomson, Gian Carlo Menotti, Leonard Bernstein, Samuel Barber, Aaron Copland, Carlisle Floyd, and Philip Glass. The fertile fields of American opera beckon us to new discoveries, and you are invited to join in the journey. Clifford (Kip) Cranna, is the Dramaturg Emeritus (Scholar in Residence), with the San Francisco Opera. He is an Opera Appreciation Lecturer, at the Fromm Institute at the University of San Francisco and the Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes (OLLI) at University of California Berkeley, San Francisco State University, and Dominican University, and at Stanford Continuing Studies. In July 2026 we honor the 250th birthday of the United States by celebrating the anniversary of its independence, marking a historic milestone known as the Semi quincentennial. Join us for these exciting upcoming lectures and movie which shine a spotlight on the uniquely creative and innovative contributions to our American culture. Matinee Movie – Yankee Doodle Dandy Experience the movie that shouts out patriotism, see it on Thursday, 7/2 at 1:00 pm Star Spangled Jazz Songs and movie musicals sustained Americans and the Troops during WW11, learn more on Tuesday, 7/7 @ 1:00 pm Elvis What’s more uniquely American than Elvis in the 1950’s? Hear from our rock historian on Thursday, 7/30 @ 1:00 pm - **Event URL**: https://allevents.in/san-francisco/i-hear-america-singing-american-opera-in-the-mid-20th-century/100001989243046501 - **Event Categories**: fitness, Entertainment, Art, Music, Theatre, performances - **Interested Audience**: - total_interested_count: 0 ## Ticket Details - **Ticket Price Range**: min: 0, max: 0, currency: USD ## Event venue details - **city**: San Francisco - **state**: CA - **country**: United States - **location**: Jewish Community Center of San Francisco - **lat**: 37.78733709999999 - **long**: -122.4472635 - **full address**: Jewish Community Center of San Francisco, 3200 California Street, San Francisco, United States ## Event gallery - **Alt text**: I Hear America Singing: American Opera in the Mid-20th Century - **Image URL**: https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events9/banners/9bcd19902de906c16b327c7c2c3d895358c508be441a869cca0a06cbb7ca7339-rimg-w1200-h600-dc171717-gmir.jpg?v=1779497823 ## FAQs - **Q**: When and where is I Hear America Singing: American Opera in the Mid-20th Century being held? - **A:** I Hear America Singing: American Opera in the Mid-20th Century takes place on Thu, 09 Jul, 2026 at 01:00 pm to Thu, 09 Jul, 2026 at 02:00 pm at Jewish Community Center of San Francisco, 3200 California Street, San Francisco, United States. - **Q**: Who is organizing I Hear America Singing: American Opera in the Mid-20th Century? - **A:** I Hear America Singing: American Opera in the Mid-20th Century is organized by Jewish Community Center of San Francisco. ## Structured Data (JSON-LD) ```json [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Event", "name": "I Hear America Singing: American Opera in the Mid-20th Century", "image": "https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events9/banners/9bcd19902de906c16b327c7c2c3d895358c508be441a869cca0a06cbb7ca7339-rimg-w1200-h600-dc171717-gmir.jpg?v=1779497823", "startDate": "2026-07-09T13:00:00-07:00", "endDate": "2026-07-09T14:00:00-07:00", "url": "https://allevents.in/san-francisco/i-hear-america-singing-american-opera-in-the-mid-20th-century/100001989243046501", "eventStatus": "https://schema.org/EventScheduled", "location": { "@type": "Place", "name": "Jewish Community Center of San Francisco", "address": { "@type": "PostalAddress", "streetAddress": "3200 California Street", "postalCode": "94118", "addressLocality": "San Francisco", "addressRegion": "CA", "addressCountry": "US" }, "geo": { "@type": "GeoCoordinates", "latitude": "37.78733709999999", "longitude": "-122.4472635" } }, "eventAttendanceMode": "https://schema.org/OfflineEventAttendanceMode", "description": "American opera came into its own in the mid-1900s. 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Together, we’re sharing thoughts and ideas, continually learning and growing, and sparking joyful moments to give us a lift when we need it most.Stay tuned as we continue to announce exciting new events and bring you content from some of our partners around the Bay Area and across the country. We’ll deliver their thought-provoking and uplifting content straight to your inbox, so be sure to sign up for our newsletter to get all of the latest.Stick with us. Lean on us. Grow with us. We promise it will be a fun and meaningful journey." } ] } ] ```