An all-Indiana treasure, Indiana University Ballet and Opera Theater present productions of the highest quality. They are worth a special trip or two, and it would be wonderful if some of them could be done as touring shows in Northwest Indiana.

The IU Ballet season continues in December with "The Nutcracker" and concludes in April with "A Night at the Opera (at the Ballet)," a tribute to ballets in operas.

Made up of 41 ballet majors, IU Ballet Theater is run like a professional company, says Michael Vernon, chair of the IU Jacobs School of Music's Ballet Department.

The level of IU Opera Theater is not far removed from that of Lyric Opera of Chicago and Chicago Opera Theater, as I experienced last April with Puccini's "Madame Butterfly."

IU's 2007-08 season, which began in September with "Rigoletto," continues with Carlisle Floyd's "Susannah" (Oct. 19-20, 26-27).

"This is his first and I think most successful opera. Its themes of hypocrisy and intolerance are more valid today than ever," says Maria Levy, executive administrator of the Opera and Ballet Theater programs.

The season continues with a new production of Puccini's "La Boheme" (Nov. 9-10, 16-17).

"The set is quite complex. We will use all three stage wagons. Act I will be set on one wagon where we have built a turn table. As the opera starts, the set will rotate and change from an outside to an inside view.

As the Act ends the wagon will begin to exit as the two lovers walk into Act II, which will be coming from the back center stage. The scene with the Café Momus will be amazing, with a huge coro (chorus), a children's coro and many supers. Truly grand opera! And it's so nice to do this opera with a young cast that actually looks like young bohemian students!" Levy says.

In February, IU presents William Bolcom's "The Wedding," based on the Robert Altman movie of the same name.

"Since its premiere at Lyric Opera of Chicago in 2004, many revisions have been made by the composer, so we are excited to be the first to be able to present this new version as the first collegiate premiere," Levy says.

"IU has done the collegiate premiere of two other Bolcom operas, 'McTeague' and 'View from the Bridge,' and Mr. Bolcom has publicly expressed his delight with our productions."

Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro" and Offenbach's "The Tales of Hoffman" conclude IU's opera season.