About Us
Imaginative, adventurous, and accessible, New York City Opera was founded with the purpose of making great opera available to a modern, wide-reaching audience. For more than sixty years, since Mayor Fiorello La Guardia established its reputation as “The People’s Opera,” the company has stayed true to its original promise: introducing generation after generation of young singers who are stars in the making, bringing the public exciting new works and compelling, fresh interpretations of classics, acting as a champion for American composers and performers, and ensuring that today’s opera, and tomorrow’s, can be a part of every New Yorker’s life.
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NYC Opera's expansive repertoire spans five centuries, from the Baroque operas that have become signature productions to commissioned works by some of today's most important composers. The company has given its audiences 29 world premieres to date, as well as 62 U.S. and/or New York premieres.
A pioneer in restoring dramatic urgency and theatrical flair to opera performance, NYC Opera is celebrated for its marriage of first-rate acting and singing, in stagings that bring new insights and new life to the repertoire. An advocate for emerging directors and designers and extraordinary new singers, the company has helped launch the careers of such stars as José Carreras, Phyllis Curtin, David Daniels, Plácido Domingo, Lauren Flanigan, Elizabeth Futral, Jerry Hadley, Catherine Malfitano, Bejun Mehta, Sherrill Milnes, Samuel Ramey, Gianna Rolandi, Beverly Sills, Norman Treigle, Tatiana Troyanos and Carol Vaness.
In the 2011-2012 season, New York City Opera embarks on a new era as it leaves its Lincoln Center home to present its season in venues throughout New York City, creating a living presence in the neighborhoods of Brooklyn, the Upper West Side, Harlem, and Central Park. These world-class theaters are specially-curated for the opera productions they house, providing the perfect backdrops and impeccable acoustics while giving audiences and performers alike a compelling new way to experience live opera, bringing the art form directly into the neighborhoods of the city we serve.
The company is also building tomorrow's audiences by being a national model in arts education: conducting an in-school education program that serves thousands of students each year throughout the New York metropolitan area. Drawing upon the company’s contemporary approach to opera, NYC Opera Education provides students with a three-dimensional introduction to the art form, transporting them from the page to the stage and then taking them behind the scenes. As a pioneer in the field, New York City Opera knows firsthand both the immediate and the long-term benefits that students reap from involvement with high-quality art. Not only can students expand their cultural awareness, but they can also find a meaningful outlet for their creativity and develop a deeper understanding of their own lives and of the world around them.
For New York City Opera's 990 Form on Guidestar, click here.
For New York City Opera's Fiscal Year 2010 Final Audit, click here.