COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. - The Glimmerglass Festival has announced its lineup for ShowTalk, a series where visiting scholars and artists explore topics related to the 2011 Festival. Held on several Saturday mornings in July and August at various venues, each session is only $10 and $5 for youths.

The first season under Artistic & General Director Francesca Zambello, the 2011 Glimmerglass Festival features new productions of Bizet's Carmen, Cherubini's Medea, Berlin's Annie Get Your Gun and a double bill of two new operas highlighting American artists. The double bill features the world-premiere of A Blizzard On Marblehead Neck, a Glimmerglass-commissioned work about an episode in playwright Eugene O'Neill's life by composer Jeanine Tesori and playwright Tony Kushner, and the professional premiere of John Musto and Mark Campbell's acclaimed Later the Same Evening based on five Edward Hopper paintings.  The four productions run in rotation in the Alice Busch Opera Theater at 7300 State Highway 80, Cooperstown, NY, July 2 through August 23, 2011.

"ShowTalk will be accessible and intriguing, yet educational," Zambello said. "This series features extremely gifted and intelligent artists, who will provide our audience members with a deeper understanding and appreciation of our 2011 Festival productions."

The ShowTalk speakers are as follows:

July 30, 10 a.m.
Fenimore Art Museum
5798 State Highway 80
Cooperstown, NY 13326
      
Learn more about two masters at the heart of two new American operas presented by The Glimmerglass Festival - painter Edward Hopper and playwright Eugene O'Neill.

• Carol Troyen, Curator Emerita of American Paintings at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and a noted expert on the works of Edward Hopper
• Terrence McNally, award-winning playwright and librettist
• Arthur and Barbara Gelb, authors of O'Neill: Life with Monte Cristo (2002), a definitive life of the playwright

August 6, 10 a.m.
Cooperstown Theatre Festival

7163 State Highway 80

Cooperstown, NY 13326       
Spend a morning delving into the fascinating story of Medea as brought to life by Euripides and Cherubini. Talks by leading scholars will be interspersed with readings from the play and live performances of excerpts from the opera.

• Gregory Nagy, Director of the Harvard Center for Hellenic Studies
• Peter Bloom, professor of music at Smith College

August 13, 10 a.m.
Otesaga Resort Hotel

60 Lake Street
Cooperstown, NY 13326

• John Julius Norwich
  
  Glimmerglass favorite John Julius Norwich brings his singular erudition and wit to a discussion of Carmen.
• Marshall Pynkoski, Artistic Director, Opera Atelier in Toronto

Marshall Pynkoski and Glimmerglass Young Artists, members of the company's apprentice program for young singers, continue Glimmerglass's tradition of exploring the baroque repertory with a special French baroque program.

• Composer Jeanine Tesori will discuss the world premiere production A Blizzard On Marblehead Neck.

The 2011 Glimmerglass Festival is host to a variety of activities that supplement the mainstage productions. Visit www.glimmerglass.org for more information on ShowTalk and other festival events. For tickets, call the Glimmerglass Box Office at (607) 547-2255.