Ford is a past president of San Diego Opera and supports the opera archive at San Diego State University.

One of opera’s most spectacular and passionate dramas provided inspiration for Zandra Rhodes’ stunning designs for the San Diego Opera production of “Aida.”

Searching for a common theme among operas written by different composers on a variety of subjects in different time periods is a challenge. It took some thought to discover a mutual topic in the 2013 repertory of San Diego Opera. A broad interpretation of loyalty can be applied to the four diverse musical dramas.