Don't Be Afraid! It's Just Opera!© starring mezzo soprano Suzanna Guzmán, is the award winning, one woman, interactive children's show that has opened the imaginations of over 200,000 school children nationwide since 1990 and dispels the myths and barriers that keep people from experiencing this great art form.
In a brisk paced, entertaining and interactive 40 minute format, Don't be Afraid! gives students and adults alike, a first glimpse into the world of opera. Students learn and experience first hand the feels and sounds of this majestic art form and even 'learn-by-doing' the whys and hows of opera performance. The audience is an integral part of the performance. From using their imaginations to singing like opera singers, to performing onstage with Suzanna, Don't Be Afraid! It's just Opera, offers a unique experiential learning opportunity. Using excerpts from the most popular operas "Carmen", "Barber of Seville", "Madame Butterfly", Suzanna removes the stigma and reveals the magic!
A working piano and a small theatre, cafetorium or large classroom is all that one needs to present the show. Recommended for grades 1-6 Don't Be Afraid! It's just opera is an excellent way to celebrate music!
REVIEWS
"I thought it was brilliant! I felt the Suzanna was able to connect with all the kids from grades 1-6 and keep them engaged for the full hour. It was a first introduction to Opera for most. She made it fun and accessible."
Ms. Kamelia - Rosedale Elementary
"Suzanna is an important part of L.A. Opera's connection to the community!"
Plácido Domingo
"I liked how she sang loud and soft and so high! It was really fun and I like the stories".
Esperanza Grade 5 Farmdale Elementary School
"I thought we were going to get a really boring old lady who sang really loud. And we got a real COOL lady. Who screamed really loud. But it was cool screaming!
Ricky- Grade 4 32nd Street Magnet School
To book Don't Be Afraid it's just Opera In Los Angeles County contact: Monk Turner, Manager, Music Center on Tour
(213) 972-4310 or [email protected]
For show price and to book outside of Los Angeles County Contact Suzanna on the contact page or click HERE.
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Happy New Year Wondrous Folk.
It's 2026.
The fires that forced us out of our Sierra Madre home for four months are finally behind us, leaving scorched reminders of all that happened. In all of my forty-plus years as a performing artist, I have never spent more time in hotels,
temporary apartments, and on friends’ couches than I did in 2025. But we were lucky. Our hearts are broken for those whose lives will never be the same. Whose homes, treasures, memories, lifetimes of work product, legacies just ...gone in one terrible evening.
I am deeply grateful to everyone who helped — not just me, fortunate to have my home intact, but especially those who lost everything. Heartfelt thanks to World Central Kitchen, FEMA, the Entertainment Community Fund, AGMA Relief, SAG-AFTRA, the SBA, the LA Arts Community Fire Relief Fund, the Center for Cultural Innovation, and all who stepped up for those of us who work from our homes and suddenly could not. Truly — thank you.
And special thanks to Bristol Riverside Theatre in Bristol, PA; The Music Center of LA County; and Woodminster Summer Musicals for the brilliant productions that quite literally took me out of the ashes to create, work, and make art when it was needed it most.
A season of Dowagers, Abuelas — and more loss. Cousin Marv, sweet Peter,, dearest Alice C. and Auntie Babe. For those of you who remember, Tia Babe was our constant companion around the world. The saddest thing is also the greatest joy: she didn’t get to see m’boy and his wife welcome their beautiful new son into the world in New York City, making me an Abuela de verdad.
Which is why you’ll now find me in Hudson Heights with the East Coast Guzmáns — a lot.
(‘Get off at 181st and take the escalator@”.)
If your travels bring you to the Big Apple, please drop a line and let’s get together. And if you’re in LA in February, April, May, don’t miss our Music Center Spotlight Master Class, the Very Special Arts Festival on the Music Center Plaza, the Sptolight Grand Prize finale and as Abuela in, In the Heights in Long Beach.
Be safe. Say warm. Help change this world into the best it can be.
With gratitude, always. 💛