Opera in Focus

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William B. Fosser's Puppet Production, Opera in Focus is an internationally known, award-winning puppet troupe which performs famous Operas and musicals with some of the world's most sophisticated puppets. Fosser, a puppeteer (and eventual Artistic Director) of the legendary Kungsholm Miniature Opera in Chicago, began designing the puppets that would eventually be used in his Opera in Focus productions in the late 1930s, although, due to the great cost involved in building each puppet, he didn't actually begin building them until 1956. After building an elaborate stage for his startlingly lifelike & uniquely articulated puppets, Fosser presented the first Opera in Focus performances -- by invitation only -- in 1958 in a rented store on the North side of Chicago where they were received with great enthusiasm.

In order to support his dream of opening a permanent theater for his puppet opera , Fosser made a living as a set designer & art director in the motion picture industry, working on such films as Ordinary People, Home Alone, Backdraft, Weird Science, Music Box, Damien: Omen II, The Breakfast Club, A League of their Own, and Groundhog Day. He also worked as a set designer for live theatrical productions, designing scenery for the Lyric Opera of Chicago, as well as the Candlelight, Ivanhoe, and Drury Lane theaters. He spent his free time, however, further developing & perfecting his puppets & the presentation of his highly elaborate operatic productions in miniature. Due to the hectic nature of his career in the film industry, performances of Opera in Focus were infrequent, except in 1962-1963 & 1978-79, when Opera in Focus enjoyed residencies both in Detroit and at the now-defunct Magic Pan restaurant in Chicago.

Finally, in 1993, the Rolling Meadows Chamber of Commerce offered Fosser a permanent home in their new park district building at 3000 Central Road in Rolling Meadows, Illinois, where Opera in Focus has been performed weekly ever since. The theater is in the Park Central building owned by the Rolling Meadows Park District.

In 2005, William B. Fosser received the prestigious "President's Award" from The Puppeteers of America organization. Opera in Focus has received a number of awards, including the prestigious Dorothy Mullen Award from the National Parks and Recreation Association for Fine Arts Programming.

http://www.operainfocus.com The Official Opera in Focus Website

http://www.toytheatre.info/Network/Fosser/Review02/Review02.htm Opera in Focus Article

http://www.lib.niu.edu/ipo/1995/ip950530.html Opera in Focus Article