The curtain is rising on a new endowed fund for opera at UNC Greensboro. 

The Thurston Family Opera Theatre Production Endowment will provide production support for the Opera Theatre Program in the School of Music. The endowment comes from a gift by Nancy and Bob Thurston, who have deep roots in the area’s arts community. Bob Thurston was a faculty member in theatre at UNCG between 1974 and 1984, and he continued working in theatre production until his retirement. 

Why opera? Thurston says it’s an art form that has it all. “Opera covers the visual, the orchestral accompaniment, the singers on stage, the costuming, the scenery, and the lighting,” he says. “It’s the one medium that shows all of the visual and performing arts at once.” 

This fund will provide resources for set design, carpentry, scene painting, lighting design, costume, hair and make-up, sound design, and more, ensuring top-notch productions. That’s something that Thurston understands very well. “I’ve had a lot of experience designing and doing technical theatre work for operas starting in 1960 or so,” he says. 

The program’s students excel, says College of Visual and Performing Arts Dean bruce d. mcclung. “Alumni of the UNCG Opera Theatre regularly appear with regional and national opera companies. This endowment will ensure that UNCG’s School of Music can produce opera at the highest level, continue to provide outstanding arts for Greensboro and the state, and strive to be a national program of choice for some of this country’s best opera students and faculty.”  

Under the longtime direction of Professor David Holley, UNCG Opera Theatre has regularly earned awards in the National Opera Association’s Annual Opera Production Competition.

The commitment of retired faculty like Thurston is also a point of pride, says mcclung. “I am grateful to CVPA emeriti faculty members such as Bob Thurston, William Carroll, Joseph DiPiazza, Robert Hansen, Nancy Walker, and others, who have made such lasting contributions and investments in this college and its students.” 

Dean mcclung adds that School of Music’s arts education alumni teach in K-12 schools across the state. As Thurston puts it, “At UNCG, the college is training students in an art form and placing people into jobs. So, they’re doing it all right.” 

This gift is part of UNCG’s Light the Way: The Campaign for Earned Achievement, which has raised more than $200 million to increase access, elevate academic excellence, and enhance the tremendous impact of UNCG’s programs. Visit lighttheway.uncg.edu for additional information.