Jenny Mollica Appointed Chief Executive of ENO & London Coliseum

The Board of English National Opera has announced the appointment of Jenny Mollica as Chief Executive of ENO and the London Coliseum. She will take up her post with immediate effect.  Jenny has been Interim Chief Executive since August 2023. 

Dr Harry Brünjes, Chairman of ENO, said today: ‘We are delighted that Jenny Mollica will lead the company at this vital time of development and change. Having conducted an extensive global search over the last few months, which attracted strong interest and experienced candidates, this appointment is the Board’s unanimous decision. Her ideas and commitment to future plans are compelling. We are delighted she has accepted this role.’

Jenny Mollica joined ENO in 2020 from the Barbican and Guildhall School of Music & Drama. During her time as Director of Strategy and Engagement at ENO, she was responsible for leading organisational strategy, policy and partnerships, and also for the company’s learning and participation programme, ENO Engage. 

Over the past four years she has worked closely with ENO’s Governing Board and Executive on the organisation’s strategic management, business planning and governance, including developing ENO’s new partnerships and plans with Greater Manchester. 

With a focus on expanding ENO’s social impact, Jenny has overseen the growth of the ENO Engage programme nationally, with more than 164,000 people across the country experiencing its programmes last year, either online or in-person. Highlights include its creative health and wellbeing programme ENO Breathe, which received the RPS Impact Award in 2021 and is now available through more than 90 NHS Partners nationally. She has also led on new digital programmes at ENO, including as Co-Executive Producer on a TV and broadcast project for Sky Kids and Sky Arts designed to introduce family audiences to opera for the first time.

Before joining ENO, Jenny Mollica worked at the Barbican and Guildhall School of Music & Drama for just over a decade in a range of roles, including Director of Creative Learning, where she developed a range of participatory programmes across music, theatre, dance, visual arts, film and literature. She is Chair of the Board of the Clod Ensemble and a Member of the Lord Lieutenant’s Cultural Heritage Council for London. 

Jenny Mollica said: ‘I am immensely proud to be entrusted with leading ENO towards its new future, serving the communities of London and Greater Manchester, and continuing our work on a national and international scale. Now, more than ever, ENO has a vital and unique role to play in the future of this extraordinary art form, and it is thrilling to be at the helm as we look ahead to this next act in the company’s life. I look forward to continuing to work with Annilese, the ENO Board and our exceptionally talented and dedicated company to shape and define this period of creative renewal for ENO, opening up new possibilities for opera in people’s lives in London, Greater Manchester and beyond.’

Annilese Miskimmon, Artistic Director of ENO and London Coliseum, said: ‘I am absolutely delighted that the Board have appointed Jenny. She is a wonderful, talented and supportive colleague and collaborator. I am looking forward to continuing our work together with the rest of the company as we move forward with our ambitious plans for London and Greater Manchester over the coming years.’

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