Thanks to the generosity of a parent of a Perpich alum, several current Perpich students had a magical evening at the Glam Jam: A Star-Studded Benefit Concert supporting Minnesota Opera. On September 28th, students and two staff ventured to Ordway Center for the Performing Arts for a unique benefit featuring a star-studded lineup of performers from the MN Opera stage. The event was hosted by Monét X Change, an American drag queen, singer, opera performer, podcaster, and reality television personality of “RuPaul’s Drag Race”.

The experience was a gift from Deborah Jiang-Stein, parent of 2013 Media Arts graduate, Xiaoye Jiang. Deborah is a member of the MN Opera Board of Directors. “I’m serving on the board especially since I want to open opera into more accessible spaces and communities,” said Jiang-Stein. Deborah is CEO and founder of the unPrison Project, a nonprofit dedicated to building literacy, mentoring, and life skills capacity for women and girls in prisons, and for their children, to help cultivate critical thinking as tools to plan, set goals, and prepare for successful life after prison, and at the same time bring public awareness about mass incarceration. She is the author of Women Behind Bars, collected interviews of incarcerated women, and the memoir, Prison Baby, described as “one woman’s struggles—beginning with her birth in prison—to find self-acceptance, proving that redemption and healing are possible even from the darkest corners.” She was also a 2017 L’Oréal Paris Women of Worth honoree. Her memoir-based play, LOCKDOWN LOVE, is in development for film and stage.

Deborah’s gift definitely made an impact on the Perpich students and they were thrilled with the opportunity.

Kevin Hohlstein, Music Instructor, takes a selfie of some of the students at Glam Jam.

Mia Tanner (Music 2025) said, “Opera wasn’t something that I had paid a lot of attention to before the event. But now that I’ve seen it and experienced it, I’m starting to think I might want to perform it in the future.”

Margot McCabe (Media Arts 2025) said, “It was a super special event and I think that it was a really interesting experience to have in high school, especially if your parents aren’t super into art. I know that coming here I kind of felt a little taken away from that because my parents would take me to concerts and shows. So being able to go as a group was really, really fun because we were surrounded by people that appreciate the arts.”

Ailee Bartz (Musical Theater 2026) said, “I really loved seeing all the different performers on stage and hearing all the different songs. It was mostly opera, but there were some jazz songs, too. It was so entertaining and just nice to see all that talent!”

Mie Morimoto (Music 2026) said, “I think the opera inspired all of us. Everyone really enjoyed it! It wasn’t just music students or musical theater students that attended, there were students from other art areas too. We had opportunities to speak with the artists and got to know more about their experiences. It was great to be exposed to this kind of art form through the school; I hope we have more opportunities like this in the future.”

The evening’s host, Monét X Change

Sam Ek (Dance 2025) said, “I’ve never seen something like that before. It was a really good experience and I was amazed by everyone’s stage presence and the way they would project. The vocal talent was insane! And the performances were very emotional, too. The operas were all very sad but impressive.”

Morimoto want on to say, “I have learned a lot from coming to Perpich, despite being a junior who’s only attended Perpich for seven weeks. For such a short amount of time, I have already learned so much and had unforgettable experiences and even went to an opera.”

Kevin Hohlstein, Music Instructor, said, “Before the performance, the students seemed most drawn to attending the event due to Monét X Change as the host. However, when we arrived, everyone dressed in the finest, they seemed to be excited to just be at the event. And when the program began, all of the students were seemingly taken by the performances. It was a celebration of the women of opera and the performers, all past performers with the opera, shared some of the greatest hits of opera and musical theater. And as this was a concert setting, the orchestra was also on stage and visible. As each number concluded, it was great to see the students cheer and applaud for the amazing performances they were able to witness. After the program, there were a number of students that rushed around to meet the performers and get pictures with them. And the performers loved to see the students take such an interest in opera. I have always worried that opera as a live artform would eventually die out if it didn’t excite the next generation of opera goers. And after the show, I feel like a light has been lit and the appreciation is there, if young people can experience it.”

Minnesota Opera is a leading American company, admired as an innovative creator of compelling opera productions, programs, and new works.