parties

Surprise Gift of $22 Million Steals the Spotlight at HGO’s Annual ‘Concert of Arias’ Event

Wilson Parish and Michael Bishop
Surprise Gift of $22 Million Steals the Spotlight at HGO’s Annual ‘Concert of Arias’ Event

Chris Johnston, Duke & C.C. Ensell, Mark Folkes

HOUSTON GRAND OPERA, a company well familiar with epic events and grand occasions, outdid itself at its recent Concert of Arias show and dinner.

The usual high point of the annual event — the finals of the Eleanor McCollum Competition for Young Singers, followed by an elegant dinner in the Wortham foyer — is the naming of the winners of the “American Idol”-type contest for young opera singers. But there was another announcement this year that had tongues wagging.

Indeed, after mezzo-soprano Natalie Lewis was named the first-place winner and handed a check for $10,000, HGO General Director and CEO Khori Dastoor spoke to the audience, explaining that donors Sarah and Ernest Butler had just made the largest ever single gift to the company — $22 million! In recognition of their gift, HGO’s 43-year-old, world-renowned school for young singers was renamed the Sarah and Ernest Butler Houston Grand Opera Studio.

“Decades-long HGO supporters Rita Leader and Glen Rosenbaum chaired the evening that saw record attendance and raised over $660,000 to benefit the future of the operatic art form through HGO Studio’s recruitment, nurturing, and support of world-class young artists,” added a rep for the company.

Boldface names in the crowd included Cynthia and Tony Petrello, Molly and Jim Crownover, Isabel and Danny David, Beth Madison, Kristina Sommerville, Bobbie Nau, and Grammy-winning soprano Isabel Leonard, who was among the judges for the competition.

Beth Wolff, Anna Dean, Cheryl Byington

Bobbie Nau & Kristina Somerville

Al Lasher and Melanie Jerrell

Cynthia Petrello & Celina Hellmund

Jennifer Davenport and Rebecca Martens

Betty and Jess Tutor, Jackie and Malcolm Mazow

Anne and Albert Chao

Danny and Isabel David

Drs. Warren and Rachel Ellsworth

Marty Dudley, Teresa Ivo, Luke Sutliff

Emily Bivona and Ryan Manser

Thomas Oswald and Maureen Zoltek

Ani Kushyan and Navasard Hakobyan

Vivianna Jolie & Astley Blair

Patrick Summers, Rita Leader and Glen Rosenbaum

Aerin & Quentin Smith

Ann & Jonathan Ayre

Parties
dining

Just in Time for Spring, Patio-Happy Hamsa Debuts Sunday Brunch

Shane Dante

Brunch at Hamsa

ON A PRETTY spring Sunday, the retractable wall of windows by Hamsa’s bar open onto its patio, filled with cool people, fab food and immaculate vibes. The Rice Village Israeli resto just debuted its inventive new brunch menu, and people are already raving. Recently nominated for the James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurateur, owners Itai Ben Eli and Itamar Levy continue to retool their modern Israeli cooking for the discerning Houston foodie.

Keep Reading Show less
Food
sponsored

Thrive & Inspire ’24: Michelle Reyna Wymes Says Synergy Among Her Team ‘Something Very Special’

Hallie Keller

Michelle Reyna Wymes, Owner of The Reyna Group

WHAT'S THE SECRET to running a successful business? It is so important to stay present every day. With the fast-paced patterns of today’s society and ever-evolving technologies, I stress to our agents how important it is to continue to learn. If one reaches a point at which the ego takes over or burnout sets in and progress takes a back seat, things will get stuck. Regardless of what field you are in, I believe in starting with the basics to set and strengthen your foundation. I treat everyone we work with from our contractors, clients, to our inspectors with respect, patience and care.

Keep Reading Show less