“The Elixir of Opera,” the Donizetti-referencing motif of the 101st San Francisco Opera season-opening ball, brought all the expected pageantry and glamor the occasion is internationally known for.

From the sumptuous decor at San Francisco City Hall by J. Riccardo Benavides and dinner by McCalls Catering & Events at the gala dinner to the gowns, jewels, white ties and tuxedos that filled the seats for the concert at the War Memorial Opera House, formality and tradition were on full display on Friday, Sept. 8.

• Concert:S.F. Opera brings in novices and veterans alike for its 101st season opener
• Photos:San Francisco Opera kicks off 101st season

But the reality is that steps from the celebration, the city is facing serious problems. Within the Civic Center, home to the San Francisco Opera, Symphony, Ballet and other leading arts organizations, people lay on sidewalks amid open drug dealing and empty buildings on Market Street, many showing signs ofvarying degrees of blight.

“Don’t you remember when you loved coming to San Francisco and couldn’t wait to get dressed up for the trip?” said Sheniece Smith of Napa, who attended the ball with a group of friends.

Indeed, San Franciscan J. Rene Harper said that while she loves the fashion and sense of occasion during a night of attending performing arts, she is very aware that “the worst part of the city is two blocks away. That doesn’t make people feel safe.”

But both believe that the arts will be key to San Francisco’s ongoing recovery.

“The opera — all the arts — are the road to the future,” Smith said.

As the city rebounds from issues exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, I contemplated that sentiment and the Opera’s place in our community.

Following a blockbustercentenary season, the company is creatively thriving. First-time attendees poured in for operas like last season’s “Frida y Diego” and for programs like its Encounter series, which creates immersive experiences throughout the Opera House aimed at audiences new to the art form. The Dolby Family’s Opera for the Bay program, which subsidizes $10 admission to performances for Bay Area residents who haven’t purchased a ticket in the past three years, also invigorated the season.

San Francisco Opera General Director Matthew Shilvock pointed out that many of these programs are supported by the Opera Ball, which is the company’s largest fundraising event of the year. So, what role do the organization’s leadership and guests at the Opera Ball and concert play in the city’s continued revival?

“I think our role is to provide thrilling content that inspires people,” Shilvock told me ahead of the ball. “There was an economic impact study done just before the pandemic that showed there was a $1.7 billion impact that the nonprofit arts had on the San Francisco economy. What’s imperative for us as arts organizations as we come out of the pandemic is that we meet a much higher bar of creativity.”

Opera Board Chairman John Gunn called the company “a very energetic, creative force” that he believes “will be a major part of the recovery of San Francisco.” But he added that donors need to do their part for the survival of the city and the arts.

“I said at a meeting once that there’s no IPO for opera productions,” said Gunn. “In Mozart’s time, he had the Emperor of Austria. I told the donors, ‘Now, you are all Emperor of Austria if you want to see new productions.’ ”

San Francisco Ballet Artistic Director Tamara Rojostressed that studies have shown that the arts play a vital role in the post-pandemic recovery of cities. She also hopes that efforts by organizations like hers and the Opera will help people understand that classical arts have something for everyone.

“It’s far more expensive to see a basketball game and no one thinks that’s elitism,” said Rojo. “There’s a difference between the excellence of our art and the perception of elitism that we have to work to separate.”

Dancer, director and writer Larissa Archer said that as a working artist, she has witnessed San Francisco through various challenges, including tech booms that led to the arts “dying, in a way, from the displacement of artists.” Now, she said “in this alleged ‘down time,’ I can’t clear my schedule enough to attend all the arts and cultural events.”

Speaker of the House Emerita Nancy Pelosi, who had announced earlier in the day herplans to run for reelection,参加了球和丈夫保罗和t说hat “the arts are the most unifying element in our society.”

“We have different views on many subjects, but when we laugh together, we cry together, we’re inspired together by music, theater — that’s common ground,” said Pelosi. “As you make the arts available to children especially, they’re a positive force.”

To that end, concert benefactor and philanthropist Maria Manetti Shrem said she will continue to invest in San Francisco.

“Everyone is pointing to San Francisco, but there are problems with homelessness and crime all over America,” said Manetti Shrem. “I believe it’s going to get better. I’ve seen many new people at the opera last year, but I want more young people. That’s the future of opera and cities.”

Reach Tony Bravo: tbravo@sfchronicle.com