Opera Box

GNO Learning & Participation Lead Donor & Tour Programme Donor

Following the Opera Interactively Into Schools (2022-2023) programme, which toured 85 Junior Highs Schools across Greece with Kornilios Selamsis’ humorous opera Offenbach’s La belle Hélène during the 2025/26 school year, six hundred additional schools will have the chance to be introduced to the magical world of opera and music theatre, this time through the Opera Box educational platform and the performance’s film version. Participation is entirely free, and educators who watch it will receive attendance certificates. The webinars will be conducted as part of the programme “The GNO Tours Greece,” which is made possible by a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) to enhance the Greek National Opera’s artistic outreach.

 Opera Box is an educational, diverse, and cross-disciplinary application, created specifically for Secondary Education teachers and students. Its goal is to provide a comprehensive modern introduction to the world of opera and music theatre through a specific perspective. Its original design and aesthetic were recently honoured with a Greek Graphic Design and Illustration Award (EBGE), highlighting the project’s quality and innovation. 

On this application, users can find original musicological texts, experiential activities, musical video games, quizzes, videos, materials from the GNO Archive, and much more. In this digital setting, Opera Box serves as a pioneering educational and entertaining tool that enriches music teaching and offers a delightful introduction to the art of opera.

Moreover, the humorous opera Offenbach’s La belle Hélène, which has already been enjoyed by nearly 20,000 students, is available to educators who participate in the programme through Opera Box to show it in class for free.

Educators who will apply to participate in the programme will have the chance to attend a 90-minute webinar. This webinar will assist participants in navigating Opera Box by presenting ideas, proposals, and good practices to help them make the most of the rich educational material available. Its themes focus on gender stereotypes, various aspects of the Helen of Troy myth, the concept and genre of opera, and the evolution of opera over time. At the same time, the programme also seeks to approach opera through the prism of pop culture, while exploring new hands-on and artistic ways to integrate it into the classroom.

After completing the webinar, the film version of Offenbach’s La belle Hélène will be available for classroom viewing on the GNO TV platform. Its running time is one academic hour, and it can be shown at any time chosen by the educator in charge.

The invitation is extended to all Secondary Education teachers, regardless of their specialization. The final programming of the webinars will be determined after coordination with the participants, based on the days and times they have requested in their applications.

Opera Box was created as part of the Opera Interactively Into Schools educational programme, which was co-funded by the European Union – European Social Fund (ESF) and National Resources NSRF 2014-2020, through the Operational Programme “Human Resources Development, Education, and Lifelong Learning.”