A Victorian Opera concert featuring three Ballarat arts groups at Civic Hall this weekend is the first step toward bringing the Ballarat Opera Festival back to life.
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Victorian Opera's Big Sing, featuring the Ballarat Choral Society, Ballarat Symphony Orchestra and two performers from Ballarat Lyric Theatre's production of The Sound of Music, will take to the stage alongside up and coming opera stars in an hour-long concert.
Victorian Opera education manager and project lead Tim Ryan said the concert was about "showcasing local talent, building capacity and highlighting the best of music and theatre" in Ballarat.
"This is a new initiative, a first off. Our presenting partner AWM Electrical is keen for us to be more than just a Melbourne-based opera company, they want us to move out and be the Victorian Opera and our first stopping point into that is working with Ballarat arts groups and our contribution to the cultural life of Ballarat," he said.
"We are looking at bringing back the Ballarat Opera Festival in the future ... and this is the first step toward that."
Mr Ryan said the Big Sing would become a cornerstone of a future Ballarat Opera Festival and expand to include more arts groups and schools.
"Next year we will repeat the Big Sing then start looking at staging operas and other recitals together across a number of different weekends across the year.
"Whether it takes this same format next year, or whether we do something different like an opera with the community and bring people in that way ... it's about building capacity to get a festival back to full swing."
Sunday's concert will also feature Victorian Opera's emerging artist prize winners Syrah Torii and Alistair Cooper-Golec, and former Michael Stubbs and Malcolm Roberts Opera Prize winner Stephen Marsh, with Ballarat-trained Australian Opera tenor Jason Wasley hosting.
There's even the opportunity for the audience to exercise their vocal cords with a community singalong of some Sound of Music favourites with Ballarat Lyric Theatre performers Jenna Featherstone (who plays Maria in the upcoming season) and Anna Marshall (who plays Mother Abbess).
Victorian Opera's Richard Mills will conduct the event with Ballarat Symphony Orchestra conductor Jenny Going, Ballarat Choral Society conductor Helen Duggan and Gareth Grainger from Ballarat Lyric Theatre.
"We are really excited and really glad to be working with the Ballarat community on this," Mr Ryan said.
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The groups have been rehearsing since the start of March with Richard Mills working with each of the conductors and groups.
"This event is about working about working together and building capacity in artistic organisations in Ballarat," Mr Ryan said.
"Ballarat has got such a strong history in performing arts ... and that's why we selected to Ballarat to link in with and we are really excited about the prospect of this program moving forward."
The Big Sing is on Sunday at 5pm at Civic Hall. Tickets from victorianopera.com.au.
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