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Overview
Founded in 1972, Calgary Opera’s Mission is:“To Engage our Audience and Enhance our Community through the Magic of Opera.”
Since its inception, and especially in the past decade, Calgary Opera has made a name for itself as a company that is committed to the development of Canadian talent and the development of new opera works.
In July 2005, Calgary Opera moved to a new home - the Arrata Opera Centre - a 29,000 square foot facility in the historic Wesley United Church that brings together administration offices, rehearsal and education space, as well as props and wardrobe workshops. Calgary Opera mainstage productions take place at the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium.
At the beginning of the 2007-2008 season Calgary Opera recorded its ninth consecutive budget surplus, while, at the same time, doubling its annual operating budget from $1.9 million to almost $5 million in the last decade. Calgary Opera has also seen substantial growth in its attendance with a subscription base close to 4,500 and total attendance over 90% capacity.
Over the past decade creating new works and building new productions has been a cornerstone of the company. By the end of the 2007-2008 season Calgary Opera had presented four world premieres, three Canadian premieres, and many company premieres. By the end of the 2008-2009 season Calgary Opera will have built five new productions, presented five works by living composers, and six works written in the 20th century. Calgary Opera is currently in the creative development stage of its next opera commission The Inventor, by Bramwell Tovey and John Murrell, which is slated for its world premiere in the 2009-2010 season. Calgary Opera is also a co-commissioner of a new opera based on the great American classic Moby-Dick by composer Jake Heggie and librettist Gene Scheer, in partnership with Dallas Opera, San Diego Opera, and San Francisco Opera. Moby-Dick will have its world premiere in Dallas in April/May of 2010 with subsequent performances by the co-producing companies in future (dates to be announced).
Calgary Opera’s outreach and education programs are helping the company connect with the community more than ever. Let’s Create an Opera continues to take the magic of opera into Calgary schools, giving children the chance to write and present their very own operas to Calgary audiences. The Opera for All program offers those ordinarily not able to come to experience live opera performances, and our For Students Only Dress Rehearsals provides thousands of students with hugely discounted tickets to mainstage productions.
Calgary Opera promotes young Canadian talent and is thrilled to have launched the Emerging Artist Development Program in 2006-2007. The most robust program of its kind in Western Canada, the program is geared at attracting some of this nation’s finest young performers to train within the context of a professional opera company and bridge the gap between the trained amateur and the professional singer.
On the mainstage, Calgary Opera produces a subscription season of three full-scale operas at the 2,400-seat Jubilee Auditorium complimented by a series of opera-related events and fundraisers.
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