Calgary Opera Reveals 2025/2026 Season
Learn more about the upcoming programming here!
Calgary Opera's 2025/26 Season will deliver a range of adventurous operas onstage, in addition to programs and events year-round. Programming includes the moving Madama Butterfly; hilarious hit, The Barber of Seville; and two family-friendly productions: Little Red Riding Hood for the holidays and a playful Hansel and Gretel featuring designs from The Old Trout Puppet Workshop. New Sunday matinee performances will give audiences more flexibility.
“Opera's timeless stories of love and loss remind each of us to make the most of the life we're living right now,” said Sue Elliott, Calgary Opera's General Director & CEO. “Our 2025/26 season is filled with hearts-and-minds experiences that will engage people of all ages, and for daylight drivers and early risers, Calgary Opera's new Sunday matinee performances fit neatly between a busy or lazy morning, and dinner with family or friends.”
“This season, audiences will experience three of the most powerful and iconic operas ever written. We will dip into the breathtaking emotions of Madame Butterfly, laugh out loud at the irresistible comedy of Barber of Seville, and be carried away by the adventure and magic of Hansel and Gretel,” said Jonathan Brandani, Calgary Opera's Artistic Director. “Sought-after Canadian and International Artists will join the rising stars of opera to inspire long-time fans and newcomers alike.”
Elsewhere, the opera curious and opera savvy will find free Serious Family Fun open houses, Little Red Riding Hood in schools and community centres across Southern Alberta, cabaret concerts and brunches with a side of soulful songs, Arias + Ales pub nights at Best of Kin Social, plus a variety of behind-the-scenes programs that explore this most collaborative of art forms.
MADAMA BUTTERFLY
November 1, 2025 - 7:30 PM
November 2, 2025 - 2 PM
November 7, 2025 - 7:30 PM at
Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
Power. Politics. Unrequited Love across the Pacific.
A young Japanese woman falls for an American naval officer who promises more than he plans to deliver. With breathtaking consequences.
Composer: Giacomo Puccini
Librettists: Luigi Illica + Giuseppe Giacosa
Conductor: Jonathan Brandani
Stage Director: Mo Zhou
Cio-Cio San: Yasko Sato
Pinkerton: Matthew White
Suzuki: Nina Yoshida Nelsen
Sharpless: Phillip Addis
Goro: Julius Ahn
Uncle Bonze: Stephano Park
Sung in Italian with English translations with Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra.
HANSEL AND GRETEL
January 31, 2026 - 7:30 PM
February 1, 2026 - 2 PM
February 6, 2026 - 7:30 PM
Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
Breadcrumbs. Trickery. Puppetry.
This tickly take on the Grimms' timeless treasure gives giggles galore. Puckish production and puppet design from The Old Trout Puppet Workshop are all-ages eye candy.
Composer: Engelbert Humperdinck
Librettist: Adelheid Wette
Conductor: Jonathan Brandani
Cantaré Children's Choir Founder and Artistic Director: Catherine Glaser-Climie
Stage Director: Brenna Corner
Hansel: Carolyn Sproule
Gretel: Simone Osborne
Witch: Claire Barnett-Jones
Sung in English with English translations with Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra + Cantaré Children's Choir.
THE BARBER OF SEVILLE
April 18, 2026 - 7:30 PM
April 19, 2026 - 2 PM
April 24, 2026 - 7:30 PM
Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
Matchmaking mishaps. Comedic chaos. Can Figaro figure it out?
Household barber, Figaro, happily hustles to unite the besotted lovers Count Almaviva and Rosina. The catch? Boorish Dr. Bartolo, Rosina's guardian, wants her for himself.
Composer: Gioachino Rossini
Librettist: Cesare Sterbini
Conductor: Daniela Musca
Stage Director: Elizabeth Stepkowski Tarhan
Figaro: Grisha Martirosyan
Rosina: Siphokazi Molteno
Almaviva: John Tessier
Bartolo: Giulio Mastrototaro
Basilio: Adam Lau
Sung in Italian with English translations with Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra.
LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD
November 28, 2025 - 7 PM
November 29 + 30, 2025 - 11 AM + 3 PM
December 5, 2025 - 7 PM
December 6 +7, 2025 - 11 AM + 3 PM
Sensory-friendly, relaxed performance Dec 6, 2025 at 11 AM at Mamdani Opera Centre
February 2 to 27, 2026 at Southern Alberta School & Community Tour
Can Little Red outwit the sneaky, shape-shifting wolf, or will he gobble her up for good? A short and sweet holiday treat for all ages!
Composer & Librettist: Seymour Barab
Roles to be performed by members of the McPhee Artist Development Program. Sung in English.
The entire season will be filled with exciting creative collaborations with some of Calgary's own best talents, including the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, the Calgary Opera Chorus, Cantaré Children's Choir and The Old Trout Puppet Workshop. The extraordinary talent of the singers in Calgary Opera's McPhee Artist Development Program will take centre stage on many events throughout the season, including the Cabarets, the Holiday production and the Masterclasses.
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