Hermanowski Family Foundation Initial Request Form

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Organization Name: Portland Opera
Legal Name (if Different): Portland Opera Association Inc.
Also Known As:
Mailing Address: PO Box 8219
City: Portland
State: Oregon
Postal Code: 97207
Main Phone: 5032411407
Main Fax:
Organization Website: https://www.portlandopera.org/
Employer ID Number: 93-6034321
Organization Tax Status: 501c3

Proposal Information

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Today’s Date: 3/17/2025
Requested Amount: $5,000

Project Title: Portland Opera to Go (POGO)
Project Description:

Since 1999, we have provided Portland Opera to Go (POGO), a K-12 in-school program that tours fully professional youth versions of operas to rural communities and Title I schools alongside an educational curriculum designed to meet core state learning requirements. Each year our artists travel more than 5,000 miles to bring this program all over Oregon and SW Washington, where in many rural communities it has become a popular annual event. Each fall we present 45-60 performances in school auditoriums, libraries, community centers, retirement facilities and more. We plan to reach 8000 students, primarily rural. Tour performances are accompanied by an extensive multimedia teacher’s guide aligned with state and Common Core curricular standards, containing arts-integrated lessons and activities in music, math, science, social studies, and language arts. Our fall 2025 POGO tour will be Gaetano Donizetti’s famous comic opera THE ELIXIR OF LOVE, adapted and directed by Kristine McIntyre, a lively romantic comedy which has been updated and reimagined to the 1930s in Midwest America.

Many regional arts organizations have cut back their touring programs and limited the geographic scope of their other programming over the past few years. Portland Opera to Go travels to all corners of Oregon, and we have been increasing our reach beyond southwest Washington as well, with particular demand growing in southeastern Washington. POGO has shared inclusive arts experiences with students, educators, and community members around the region for over two decades; to date, we have reached nearly 300,000 audience members living in Oregon, southern Washington, northern California, western Idaho, and northern Nevada. Our hope is that these programs help to dispel notions about opera being inaccessible or elitist and inspire children, educators, and community members of all backgrounds to be open to opera experiences in the future.

Total Project Budget: $175,610

Other Funding
Sources For The Project (Committed & Potential): Because this program runs through December, funds received in the first half of FY25 were allocated to our fall 2024 POGO tour. Therefore, because we are so early in the fundraising cycle, no funds have been secured yet. However, the following organizations supported us in 2024 and we anticipate their support returning in 2025 as well: Ronald W. Naito Foundation ($10,000); PGE Foundation ($10,000); Roundhouse Foundation ($10,000); The Standard ($10,000); Rose E. Tucker Charitable Trust ($15,000). Pending grants include BNSF Foundation, Clark Foundation, Max & Victoria Dreyfus Foundation, Samuel S. Johnson Foundation, Kinsman Foundation, Reser Foundation, Roundhouse Foundation, Umpqua Bank, US Bank, and Wyss Foundation.

Project Duration: Tour runs October – December 2025
Geographical Area Served: 45-60 tour stops per year throughout Oregon, Southwest Washington and beyond, primarily rural communities
Age Group To Be Served: primarily K-12 youth

Contact Information

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Contact Prefix (Mr,Mrs etc.): Ms.
Contact First Name: Sue
Contact Last Name: Dixon
Contact Title: General Director
Contact Phone: 5032411407
Contact Email: sdixon@portlandopera.org