Fort Worth Opera will host a multimedia concert titled Cowboys & Culture on February 5, 2025, at the Kimbell Art Museum’s Renzo Piano Pavilion. The event, part of the closing week of the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo, aims to celebrate the music and stories of the American West. The concert begins at 18:30 and features renowned dramatic tenor Clifton Forbis, who is also the current chair of voice at Southern Methodist University’s Meadows School of the Arts.
Forbis will share the stage with Fort Worth Opera’s 2025–26 Hattie Mae Lesley Resident Artists, including soprano Melissa Martinez, mezzo-soprano Madeline Coffey, tenor Coleman Dziedzic, and bass-baritone José Olivares. Throughout the performance, attendees will experience projected artwork from contemporary Western painter Kevin Chupik, which will enhance the concert’s visual storytelling. Live interviews between selections will provide insight into Chupik’s artistic vision, enriching the audience’s connection to the music and imagery.
Musical Highlights and Cultural Significance
The concert’s repertoire includes a blend of Western-themed operatic pieces and American works. Selections will feature works from Puccini’s La Fanciulla del West, Craig Bohmler and Steven Mark Kohn’s Riders of the Purple Sage, and Héctor Armienta’s Zorro. This diverse program reflects not only the mythic allure of the West but also the rich cultural identity of Fort Worth.
Angela Turner Wilson, General and Artistic Director of Fort Worth Opera, expressed the importance of the concert in marking the company’s 80th season. “We wanted to embrace all of Fort Worth in the celebration,” she stated. “Cowboys & Culture isn’t just a slogan here; it’s a reflection of our pride in our Western heritage and the artistic tradition that has flourished alongside it.”
Forbis echoed these sentiments, emphasizing the accessibility of opera as an art form that has always resonated with the community. “Before my day and anybody else’s, there were traveling companies going from city to city doing shows,” he noted. “Opera isn’t this rare thing that only exists in some far-off world. Even for the performers, most of us are just normal folks.”
A Homecoming for Clifton Forbis
Forbis’ return to Fort Worth Opera holds personal significance, as his professional career began with the company in 1990 with a production of Stewart Copeland’s Holy Blood and Crescent Moon. Since then, he has built an internationally acclaimed career while maintaining close ties to his roots, performing at significant local events such as the opening of Bass Performance Hall in 1998 and the inaugural season at the Winspear Opera House in 2009.
“Clifton has worked at the highest level, on the biggest stages, and he still carries himself like the person next door,” Wilson stated. “That combination—excellence without pretense—is part of what makes him so special, and it’s exactly the spirit we want audiences to feel in Cowboys & Culture.”
As part of Fort Worth Opera’s commitment to nurturing emerging talent, Forbis will perform alongside the Resident Artists, who are at the outset of their professional journeys. “It’s fun to watch the next generation emerge onstage in front of you,” Forbis shared. “Knowing that the business I love is going to be in good hands is a special feeling.”
The evening promises to be an enriching experience for attendees, combining vibrant music with compelling visual art. Chupik’s work brings traditional Western themes into a contemporary context, often with a humorous or ironic twist. His art, which is currently displayed in the Grit and Grace exhibition at William Campbell Gallery in Fort Worth until February 7, 2026, will be featured prominently during the concert.
The Cowboys & Culture concert will last approximately 60 minutes without an intermission, making it an engaging experience for all. Tickets are available through the Fort Worth Opera’s official website at fwopera.org, where additional details can also be found.
Founded in 1946 by three visionary women—Eloise MacDonald Snyder, Betty Berry Spain, and Jeanne Axtell Walker—Fort Worth Opera is the oldest opera company in Texas and one of the oldest in the United States. The organization has garnered acclaim for its artistic excellence and commitment to community engagement while championing new American works alongside traditional operatic repertoire.
