A Nut at the Opera

A droll and gentle satire of the colorful characters who make up the opera world

A Nut at the Opera is a colorful and hilarious look at a fictitious opera world as seen through the eyes of artist Maurice Vellekoop. With characters such as Olga Pickuptruckskaya and Valda Heck and references ranging throughout the history of opera, nothing―from the heights of Wagnerian solemnity to the excesses of French spectacle―escapes the elegant skewering of Vellekoop's pen.

With an introduction by Stewart Hamilton, radio personality and host of CBC Radio's Opera Quiz, and featuring Vellekoop's trademark lavish, over-the-top illustrations throughout, A Nut at the Opera is for the opera aesthete. The initial drawings were originally conceived as a series of birthday cards for a dear friend of the artist's who is now deceased; they form a fond tribute to this teacher and mentor.