The opening night celebration drew 400 guests for cocktails, caviar, and Rigoletto
Words by DIANE DORRAN SAEKS
On Friday, September 5, the San Francisco Opera hosted a palazzo-themed gala beneath the soaring rotunda of City Hall. Table-hopping was de rigueur as benefactors Dede Wilsey, Jack Calhoun, Barbara Wolfe, and Carolyn Chang greeted friends and family. Event chairs Jennifer Bienaimé and Isabel Rhee swooped in to speak with guests including Jennifer Walske, Mary Beth Shimmon, and David Todd Oldroyd.
Scharffenberger Cellars sparkling wine was poured, and Château de Pommard wines were enjoyed with a festive dinner of double lamb chops and polenta piperade. McCalls Catering created a splendid mushroom risotto for the many vegetarians among the opera devotees.
San Francisco residents Jony and Heather Ive, attending the gala for the first time, were guests of honor of opera general director Matthew Shilvock, who was celebrating his 10th year in the position. Shilvock also seized the moment to honor the late, great Giorgio Armani by wearing his favorite Armani white tie ensemble. “We’re surrounded by friends,” said Heather, glancing at tablemates Dagmar Dolby, San Francisco chief of protocol Penny Coulter, and others seated nearby.
Jony, who has received recognition for the restoration and renovation of the historic Jackson Square world headquarters of his creative collective, LoveFrom, disclosed that he is thinking of further enhancing the neighborhood with a series of pop-ups, such as an Hermès boutique demonstrating heritage and fine craft. “I love to see how beautiful things are made, and I’m really into craft, the human hand,” he said.
Nearby, honored guests Nancy and Paul Pelosi commemorated their 62nd wedding anniversary. “We’ve celebrated our wedding at the opera gala every year. We love opera so much,” Nancy said. Also enjoying the rococo decor by J. Riccardo Benavides were Maria Manetti Shrem, Alex Chases, Gretchen Kimball, Betty Yu, and Maryam Muduroglu.
Mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges, one of the musical artists featured in Rigoletto, posed on the grand marble City Hall stairway in her dramatic black lace and silk organza couture gown by Stephanie Verrières of Verrières & Sako. “J’Nai is a dream client,” Verrières said. “I love creating custom gowns for opera artists and musicians. She was a particularly inspiring and creative collaborator.”
Jack Calhoun, president of the San Francisco Opera Association, noted that every performance of the fall season is selling out fast, and that the gala was sold out months ago. “Opera is more popular than ever in San Francisco, so we have much to celebrate,” he said. “We’re attracting younger audiences and music-lovers from throughout the community. It’s a tremendously exciting season.”
At 8 p.m., conductor and creative director Eun Sun Kim stepped to the podium to wild applause. The soaring columns of Michael Yeargan’s Italianate sets and Constance Hoffman’s highly stylized and witty costumes brought swagger and grand theatricality to Giuseppe Verdi’s Rigoletto. After the final curtain, with a sustained standing ovation, the audience and performers dashed across the darkening avenue back to the City Hall Rotunda, now a full-on disco, with DJ HeyLove pumping out beats that quickly got everyone on the dance floor.
Highlights of the fall season include a new production of Wagner’s Parsifal, which opens October 25. November 14 brings the thrilling world premiere of The Monkey King, a San Francisco Opera commission, with libretto by David Henry Hwang, music by Huang Ruo, direction by Diane Paulus, and costume design by Anita Yavich. Basil Twist is creating special puppetry, which is always pure fantasy.
September 22, 2025
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