The Pink Flamingo Theater to Hold Grand Opening Weekend on August 12th “ 13th, 2016 with Fundraiser for Opera Essence

A new entertainment venue in the North Fremont Business District, The Pink Flamingo Theater (www.pinkflamingotheater.com) located at 2115 North Fremont in Monterey, CA will hold a special Grand Opening Weekend on Friday and Saturday, August 12^th and 13^th from 7:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. The fundraiser event benefits the non-profit, Opera Essence, and will feature performances by the respected Soprano Norma Mayer and Flutist Richard Mayer. The cost is $25 per person. For tickets go to www.brownpapertickets.com (http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2583070) and more information, call (831) 238-2399.

The Pink Flamingo Theater is an intimate space available for rentals for plays, musical performances, documentaries, lectures, workshops and more.

According to Chris Caffrey, owner and operator of The Pink Flamingo Theatre and founder of A Caffrey Girl Production, “When people come to The Pink Flamingo Theatre, I want them to enjoy a unique first class experience from beginning to end.”

She adds, “The name of my new venue, The Pink Flamingo Theater, is a tribute to all of the pink flamingo lawn ornaments that adorned the green lawns in Parma, Ohio, during my childhood.”

About Chris Caffrey

Born in Cleveland, Ohio to a prominent Irish family, Chris Caffrey is dedicated to helping women, especially those in theatre, seniors and homeless women. She recently retired from a 33-year management career at AT&T. Founder of A Caffrey Girl Production, In 2016, Chris produced two successful plays at the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts, “Parallel Lives” and “Motherhood Out Loud”. Chris is a comedian and has performed for several years with the local improv troupe Mirth-o-Matics. She is also an actress and has performed as Kate in the play, “Sylvia”, at the Paper Wing Theatre, one of the Sisters in “HMS Pinafore”, Bruce Arliss Wharf Theater, the Wicked Witch of the West for Directors Showcase at MPC and the mother in “Picnic”, Directors Showcase, MPC. In addition to A Caffrey Girl Production, Chris also owns Channels of Energy, where she teaches Adaptive Yoga for the Flexibly Challenged. She is a Certified Massage Therapist and was trained in Asian Body Work at the Five Branches University in Santa Cruz and San Jose. Her focus is to bring holistic stress management at an affordable price. Chris is also a fabulous Vegan Cook....with an emphasis on what taste good.

About Opera-Essence Performances

The mission of Opera-Essence Performances, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, is to provide audiences with an opportunity to create art by encouraging interactive participation in staged musical events. In so doing, Opera-Essence Performances involves the audience in an art form that is not generally accessible or available to all, including at many schools.

Saluting the creative spirit in all of us, soprano Norma Mayer has developed an interactive program of operatic arias and classical music used to introduce audiences of all ages to the classics. During the show, historical facts are presented in an enjoyable and accessible manner. Audience members are invited to participate on stage to create the drama of the scenes being performed. This show encourages dramatic creativity through improvisatory acting, as well as musical creativity through the use of various percussion instruments. Costume pieces and props are also provided for the participants.

This concept was developed by Norma in Austin, Texas for Waldorf school children. During 2003 and 2004, the Monterey Opera Association engaged Norma to present this show in Monterey County schools. During 2005, the show toured Monterey County schools under the auspices of the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts. In addition, since 2005 this show has toured locally, throughout the United States, as well as in France and Estonia. It has been featured on the Monterey First Night program, where it attracts audiences of all ages.

About Soprano Norma Mayer 

The glorious award-winning voice of Norma Mayer has thrilled audiences from the Italian opera stage to the African-American church. Critics have been ecstatic in their praise (Santa Cruz Good Times: "remarkable opera diva … true operatic force to contend with…a unique essence…an attractive nuance that she brings to the role." Coast Weekly: "a real find." Monterey Herald: "splendid singer … a meltingly rich voice."

Awards and honors for her vocal artistry include the Margarette McGammon Award of Excellence awarded by the Fort Worth Opera Guild, finalist of the International Puccini Vocal Competition, winner of the National Society of Arts and Letters Vocal Competition, numerous National Association of Teachers of Singing awards, and finalist of the Tuesday Music Club Vocal Competition.

Norma has performed throughout the United States, as well as in Europe, in operas and concert appearances. Recent tours have taken her to Italy, Russia, Estonia, Germany, and France.

An avid recitalist, Norma often collaborates with her husband, flutist Richard Mayer. The two performers have recorded three CD’s together (At The Rimsky-Korsakov Museum, In Concert At L’Eglise St.-Pierre, and Cathedral). The Mayer’s have also recorded several DVD's (Norma and Richard Mayer Live in Estonia, SPIRITUAALID Norma ja Richard Mayer, and Spirituals Concert at Wave Street Studios).

Richard Mayer Flutist

Flutist Richard Mayer is at home in many musical genres, including classical, jazz, and pop. He was a founding member of the influential Russian rock group ZA in 1970's Leningrad, which pointed the way for the subsequent acoustic folk-jazz movement there. Richard also performs extensively with his wife Norma Mayer, the operatic soprano. Together they play a vast repertoire encompassing early music, art songs, opera, African-American spirituals, show tunes, and jazz.

For more information, go to https://sites.google.com/site/normaandrichardmayer/Home.

To arrange an interview with Chris Caffrey, contact Wendy Brickman at (831) 633-4444 or email [email protected]. For more information, go to www.pinkflamingotheater.com or www.acaffreygirlproduction or call (831) 238-2399.