City Opera Reflects on 2016
By: BWW News Desk Dec. 14, 2016
2016 was a wonderful year for chamber opera in Vancouver... and Fallujah was produced in the United States. Twice.
City Opera in 2016...
- produced our 'premiere' and first comedy, The Lost Operas of Mozart, over three nights at Christ Church Cathedral in October
- achieved the $25,000 Mozart matching grant challenge from the Edwina and Paul Heller Memorial Fund -- thanks to our friends and supporters
- announced production of our commission Fallujah at Los Angeles (Long Beach Opera) and Manhattan (New York City Opera)
- continued Missing in co-pro with Pacific Opera Victoria
- by Jury, chose composer Brian Current to set the libretto by Marie Clements
- held public text workshops at the Native Education College and the DTES Carnegie Centre
- together with the DTES Heart of the City Festival, and Vancouver Moving Theatre, established an Advisory Group of aboriginal women to plan the Opening Night event for families
- presented 22 public performances, including Lost Operas. We have now given 97 events in the life of the company, including 33 in the Downtown Eastside
- celebrated the tenth anniversary of our founding - back on 6 December 2006
- elected businesswoman and philanthropist Nicola Brailsford to our Board of Directors
- hired our first General Manager, Cathleen Gingrich
- introduced Bramwell Tovey in his first role in an opera
- continued implementation of our Five Year Strategic Plan. If successful, by 2021 we will present two mainstage chamber operas a year, one each in the fall and spring
- and, operated in the black. City Opera has never run a deficit
"I am so proud of our company," said City Opera president Janet Lea. "In 2016 we enjoyed tremendous success with The Lost Operas of Mozart. Our commission Fallujah was produced in New York and California.
"We entered our first co-production agreement, and held workshops for Missing. We began planning our concerts for 2017, our mainstage productions for 2018 and 2019, and our next commission after Missing.
"On behalf of the Board of City Opera Vancouver, I thank our patrons and donors, the corporations, foundations and government agencies that support us, our audiences and volunteers, our friends in colleague companies, our artists, staff and our Board of Directors - in a word, all who combined to make 2016 a great year for City Opera and its audiences."
City Opera in 2017...
- free concert at DTES Oppenheimer Park, February 10
- public piano-vocal workshops for Missing in Victoria in February, and in Vancouver on February 28 (Native Education College) and March 1 (DTES Carnegie Centre)
- four concerts at Il Centro / The Italian Cultural Centre, throughout the year
- our eighth annual appearance at Italian Day on The Drive, June 11
- two more appearances at Minoru Chapel, another at Famee Furlane, and more in planning across the year
- introduction of the Stage Director and design team for Missing, in April
- tickets go on sale for Missing, early September
- free Families-Only opening night for Missing, November 1 in the DTES
- public run of Missing on November 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11 at the York Theatre
- public run continues at the Baumann Centre for Opera, in Victoria, on November 16, 18, 20, 22 and 24
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