Opera Columbus
Opera Association of Central Ohio
AbbreviationOC
Formation1981
TypeNon-profit organization
Location
ServicesOpera company
Key people
Julia Noulin-Mérat (General Director and CEO)
Budget
$1.2M
Websiteoperacolumbus.org

Opera Columbus (Opera Association of Central Ohio, OC) is an American professional opera company in Columbus, Ohio, founded in 1981, and is a member of Opera America. OC employs nearly 350 artists and creative professionals annually—vocalists, artisans, stagehands, costumers, and scenic designers—many of whom are members of the Columbus community.

Productions

The company currently offers three fully staged opera productions and an educational outreach program during an annual season that runs from October through May, one of which is a featured new work. Performances are offered in Downtown Columbus and in partnership with the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts.

Opera Columbus collaborates with other organizations, including Against the Grain Theatre (Toronto), Apollo's Fire Baroque Orchestra (Cleveland), BalletMet (Columbus), the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, Company XIV (New York), and ProMusica Chamber Orchestra (Columbus).[citation needed]

History

Tosca, Opera Columbus

Opera Columbus was chartered in September 1981 with productions of Tosca, Il trovatore, and Don Giovanni, in the same year. Its current general director and CEO is Julia Noulin-Mérat, having begun her tenure with the 2021 season.[1]

Opera Columbus has an artistic collaboration with the Artist Diploma for Opera Studies (ADOS) program at the Juilliard School.[citation needed] Launched in 2016–2017, this collaboration is bringing Juilliard ADOS artists to Columbus to perform in principal roles in Opera Columbus' mainstage productions. In addition to fulfilling Opera Columbus' mission to support and develop emerging talent, this relationship also benefits local audiences, bringing such artists to the Columbus stage, often in their role debuts.

Their K-12 education programs include in-school children's opera performances and workshops, Southern Theatre tours, student discount tickets, and new programs like concerts in the classroom and opera rehearsals.[citation needed]

In 2021, Opera Columbus announced their inaugural Crane Directing Fellowship specifically for BIPOC artists.[2]

Opera Columbus is a non-profit organization overseen by an independent board of directors with an operating budget of $1.2M. Its main offices are located in the Ohio Theatre building at 55 E. State St. Their mantra is "Make it Yours".

World premieres

Repertory

CRANE Directing Fellow

The Crane Directing Fellowship, inaugurated for the 2021-2022 season, was created explicitly to advance the careers of BIPOC stage directors by creating early-career opportunities to gain hands-on experience assisting and directing main stage productions.

Leadership History

See also

References

  1. ^ "General Directyor + CEO". www.operacolumbus.org.
  2. ^ Wild, Stephi. "Opera Columbus Announces First Directing Fellow in BIPOC Program". BroadwayWorld.
  3. ^ "Powerful Vanqui Joins a Love Story and the Antislavery Struggle" by Cecilia Porter, The Washington Post, March 6, 2006
  4. ^ Wild, Stephi. "ProMusica Opera Columbus Presents The Flood". BroadwayWorld.

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