Opera Gives Discount to Subscribers of Failed Company

Musical theater should be an exhilarating experience, “like standing on the curb watching a parade go by,” says James Blackman, director of the light opera company in residence at the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center.

But recent subscribers to the Long Beach Civic Light Opera may feel more like the parade turned and marched right over them.

When the city’s 47-year-old institution declared bankruptcy and closed in April, theatergoers were left holding tickets giving them admittance to . . . nothing. Now those stubs will buy subscribers a 25% discount to the three-production season of the Redondo Beach-based Civic Light Opera of South Bay Cities.

“The discount will mean we’re running at a loss, but we want to try to keep the spirit of Long Beach alive because it did a lot for a long time in this region,” Blackman said.