With graduates of DePaul Opera Theatre (DOT) performing on stages around the globe, DePaul University’s School of Music demonstrates its importance as a training ground for students seeking careers on the opera and theater stage. Now in its 16th year, DOT, under the steady guidance of director Harry Silverstein, presents a fully staged version of Benjamin Britten’s “Albert Herring,” the first of this season’s two major opera productions, on Oct. 17 at 7:30 p.m. and Oct. 19 at 2 p.m.

Silverstein believes this opera to be “a brilliant piece of music—an understated and superb comedy in which the nature of the relationships between the characters is very contemporary.” He also has undertaken this project to instill in his students a better understanding and appreciation for the notion of ensemble opera.

Scored for a 12-piece orchestra and a cast of nine principal singers, Britten penned “Albert Herring” in 1947, taking its inspiration from Guy de Maupassant’s short story, “Le Rosier de Madame Husson.”

“Albert Herring” is a domestic comedy set in a small market town in East Suffolk at the turn of the 20th century. The English character types, and especially the title figure, a greengrocer, verge on subtle but uproarious caricature. “Albert Herring” was the first opera performed at the opening of Britten’s own Aldeburgh Festival in June of 1948.

The performances of “Albert Herring” will be presented in the DePaul Concert Hall, 800 W. Belden Ave. There is no charge for admission. For information, call (773) 325-7260. Free but limited parking is available to concertgoers in the lot directly in front of the Concert Hall. Reduced rate parking is available at the Sheffield Parking Facility, 2335 N. Sheffield Ave.

Without public fanfare, DePaul’s School of Music has evolved into a music education institution of the highest rank. An outstanding faculty roster of music professionals and an increasingly competitive student body attest to this transformation. Presenting more than three hundred public performances annually – most of them free – the DePaul School of Music offers its students a venue for their blossoming artistry and provides the school with an opportunity to raise public awareness of its many activities. Among these musical events are the major annual opera productions presented in English by the DePaul Opera Theatre, which include these performances of “Albert Herring,” as well as a series of performances of Bizet’s “Carmen” at DePaul University’s Merle Reskin Theatre on March 12, 13 and 14, 2004.