Houston Grand Opera (HGO) will present Mary Carol Warwick and Kate Pogue’s The Velveteen
Rabbit this spring as part of the company’s Opera to Go! program, which offers fully-staged,
high-energy, 45-minute operas at schools, libraries, and community venues all over
greater Houston. HGO has tapped Sharon Ott, Director, University of Houston School of Theatre and Dance, to direct the Spring
2026 production.
Based on Margery Williams’s 1922 picture book The Velveteen Rabbit, the opera was
commissioned by HGO in 2004, becoming the company’s 29th world premiere. The work
resonated so strongly with Houston families, the company revived it a decade later.
Now, audiences can again experience its touching story and tuneful score.
The opera is about a sweet stuffed rabbit who dreams of becoming real. He’s loved
by his owner, a young boy, but starts to feel neglected when shinier, newer toys steal
the young child’s affection. After the bunny sees the boy through an illness, he’s
left behind as contaminated. But because the boy loves him, a fairy makes him real,
and at the opera’s end, he hops off into the forest.
“It has been incredible to work with such talented artists at the Houston Grand Opera, many of whom are recent graduates or current students of the Moores School of Music, for my directorial debut at the company,” said Ott. “I look forward to the joy and delight they will bring to young audiences across the Houston area and beyond.”
To learn more about Opera to Go! and book The Velveteen Rabbit at your school or community space, please contact HGO at OperaToGo@HGO.org or 713-546-0245.