Sir Roger Moore to emcee Houston Grand Opera`s 50th gala event

Sir Roger Moore leaves behind the invincibility of James Bond to emcee the April 30th Wortham Theater Center event, headlined by soprano Renée Fleming and her recent musical cohort, Sir Elton John.

A passel of HGO favorites also will appear: sopranos Patricia Racette, Ana Maria Martinez and Laura Claycomb; mezzo-sopranos Frederica von Stade, Denyce Graves and Joyce Di Donato; tenor Ramón Vargas and Marcello Giordiani; and bass-baritone Bryn Terfel. Several will be in Houston appearing in HGO productions.

HGO music director Patrick Summers will conduct.

The intriguing twist will be the celebration of HGO's commitment to new operas.

Tickets are $250 and $500 and include a pre-concert champagne reception and outdoor post-concert party.

If you want to party all weekend, you can move up to the underwriter level, starting at $6,000 and topping out at $100,000.

Tickets are currently on sale to subscribers. General public sales will begin March 1; HGO has a waiting list for those tickets.

For information, call 713-228-6737.

Thanks to `Ken` for the alert.

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