Ballam's opera miracle thriving

Turning a dilapidated theater well outside the arts hub of the Wasatch Front into the headquarters of a nationally prominent opera festival is a task most entrepreneurs would reject: too little available funding, too much risk, not enough audience for opera in Logan.

But Michael Ballam's focus went beyond the risks to the idea that providing world-class opera and musical theater would not only bring "ennobling artistic experiences," but also enthusiastic audiences and, in turn, success.

Founded in 1992 in the newly restored Ellen Eccles Theatre, the Utah Festival Opera boasts a summer-to-early-fall repertory of professionally produced and presented operas and musical theater productions. UFO also offers statewide education programs, concerts, a classic film series, seminars and other programs. The company has presented 37 operatic works, including two premiere productions.

After massive fund-raising efforts, UFO purchased and, in 1997, restored downtown Logan's Dansante building, which now houses offices, rehearsal and production spaces and meeting rooms and is available for community events free of charge.

The company recently was ranked by Money magazine as one of the top 20 opera festivals in the world. According to a Utah State University study, UFO's 2002 season pumped $4.9 million into the local economy, despite the national economic downturn.

Ballam's dreams do not end there, however. UFO performs with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and to audiences in Park City, Ogden and Lehi and plans to continue to expand festival offerings. It's all part of his suitably dramatic personal motto: "Expect a miracle."