An Ode to Black Opera at CAAM

California African American Museum hosted “LA Opera: An Ode to Black Opera” on Tuesday, May 19, from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. at its Exposition Park campus in Los Angeles. The program was presented through LA Opera Connects, the company’s community engagement arm, and CAAM described it as an evening of music celebrating Black composers. We Like L.A. included the concert in its May 18-22 arts roundup for Los Angeles, placing the event alongside other museum and performance listings for the week. ### Who appeared in the CAAM program? CAAM named four LA Opera artists for the event: Cedric Berry, a bass-baritone; Ashley Faatoalia, a tenor; Thalia Moore, a soprano; and Alonso Pirio, a pianist. The museum’s event page repeated that lineup across two program listings, and Eventbrite carried the same billing for the May 19 performance. (caamuseum.org) LA Opera Connects was identified by CAAM as the presenting program returning to the museum for the evening. The wording matters because it places the concert within an ongoing partnership model rather than a one-off rental or outside booking, according to the museum’s own event description. That characterization is an inference from CAAM’s language that LA Opera Connects “returns to CAAM.” (caamuseum.org) ### What was the concert built around? CAAM described the event as “an evening of music celebrating Black composers.” A separate community listing on Meetup said the performance would celebrate “the legacy and impact of Black composers and vocalists through classical music and storytelling,” though the museum’s own page did not publish a full repertoire list. (caamuseum.org) The available public listings point to a vocal program centered on opera and adjacent classical performance rather than a staged production. The title “An Ode to Black Opera,” the named singers, and the one-hour running time all support that reading, though neither CAAM nor LA Opera published a scene-by-scene program in the sources reviewed. (caamuseum.org) ### Where did the event fit in Los Angeles this week? We Like L.A. listed “An Ode to Black Opera at CAAM” in its weekly guide covering May 18 through May 22 in Los Angeles. The roundup presented the concert as one option in a broader week of cultural programming that also included exhibitions, outdoor events and performances across the city. (caamuseum.org) Exposition Park’s event calendar separately listed the concert for May 19 at CAAM, marked it as free and gave an attendance figure of 100. Eventbrite also carried the event page for the same date and location at 600 State Drive in Los Angeles. ### Was this a ticketed concert or an open museum program? Exposition Park’s calendar listed the cost as free. (welikela.com) Eventbrite hosted registration for the program, which suggests attendees were asked to reserve spots even though the event itself was not advertised as a paid performance. CAAM’s own page included an RSVP prompt rather than a ticket price. (expositionpark.ca.gov) That aligns with how museums and civic venues often manage capacity for limited-seat performances, though neither CAAM nor Eventbrite published a final attendance count in the materials reviewed. ### What does CAAM say comes next? CAAM’s upcoming-events page shows the museum continuing its public programming after the May 19 concert, including a “Zine Workshop: Juneteenth 2026” scheduled for Saturday, June 20. (expositionpark.ca.gov) For this event itself, the most direct public record remains the museum listing, the Exposition Park calendar and the We Like L.A. weekly guide that placed “An Ode to Black Opera” in the city’s arts calendar for the week of May 18-22. (caamuseum.org) (caamuseum.org)