Utah Opera today announced its four planned productions for 2012-2013, including a trio of some of the most beloved pieces in the opera canon. ---

The season opens Oct. 13 with Verdi's Il Trovatore, followed by the Utah Opera premiere of Daniel Catan's Florencia en el Amazonas in January. March 2013 brings Mozart's The Magic Flute, and the season wraps in May with Rossini's The Barber of Seville. Season tickets for the 2012-2013 season go on sale tomorrow (Jan. 31) at 801-533-NOTE or UtahOpera.org.

And there's no need for relative newcomers to the art form to be afraid of it. Utah Opera provides online learning materials, in addition to programs like the "opera prelude" lectures one hour prior to each performance at the Capitol Theatre, and post-performance Q&A with Utah Opera director Christopher McBeth. Also, every performance features "super titles" above the stage for following the action -- even if the opera is in English.