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"Frank is an endless font of ideas," says OCNC board chairman Steven Levitas. "His efforts to make opera more comfortable and informal have led to a dramatic transformation in the way the company markets its product."

With an undergraduate engineering degree from Duke University and a master's in management from MIT, Grebowski might seem an odd choice to run an opera company. It's certainly not where he thought he'd end up.

"I credit my three daughters for my career change," Grebowski says. "My jobs in the business development world were not fulfilling. I began participating in the arts as a way to get some balance in my life and to spend time with my daughters."

With them, he learned to play stringed instruments, participated in theater productions at their summer camps, and worked on community outreach for their school orchestra. In time he struck out on his own, volunteering for the symphony and opera in Chattanooga, Tenn., as a greeter, a bartender and ultimately a supernumerary (as a Spanish guardsman) in a production of the opera "Fidelio."

"One day my daughters asked me to think of what my dream job would be," Grebowski remembers. "I came to realize I wanted to be in arts management." His determination to fulfill the dream landed him in Raleigh. "I think I'm well-qualified for the job of getting people interested in opera, because I was new to it myself just a short time ago. I got the chance to see it from the inside and now I know that's the way to get others involved."

Others reach out, too

All opera companies are seeking additional ways to make opera more accessible. Chapel Hill's Long Leaf Opera promotes a casual atmosphere for its productions.

"We market our performances as ones you don't have to dress up for -- no coat and tie," says Jim Schaeffer, the company's executive director. "We don't want people to feel intimidated." Even the Met is beaming live performances to local movies theaters, where popcorn and Puccini can coexist.

Grebowski keeps in touch with North Carolina's other opera companies to seek additional ideas and collaborations. He has extended OCNC's season by entering into a cooperative production with Asheville Lyric Opera, Donizetti's "Lucia di Lammermoor," slated for January. The company then produces its own evening of Italian opera highlights in April and closes the season in June with another Puccini crowd-pleaser, "Madama Butterfly." Talks, open rehearsals and performances in public areas also precede these three.

Opera is the most expensive of the performing arts. To stay in the black is a constant struggle, so Grebowski knows he must continue proselytizing for converts and supporters.

"Our goal is to make opera visible and accessible to as many people as possible, of all demographics, and we'll do whatever it takes to reach them."

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