Santa Fe Opera

The Santa Fe Opera is an opera company located 7 miles north of Santa Fe, New Mexico. It is well-known internationlly for introducing new and innovative operas as well as for its productions of works from the standard operatic repertoire. Since its inception, the Santa Fe Opera has staged over forty American premieres and has commissioned nine new operas.

Related Topics:
Opera - Santa Fe - New Mexico - Standard operatic repertoire

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The Santa Fe Opera was founded in 1957 by John Crosby, a New York-based conductor whose goal was to give American singers the opportunity to learn and perform new roles while having ample time for rehearsal and preparation. Crosby also established a program to assist young singers in making the transition from academic to professional life; to date, over 1,500 aspiring opera singers have participated.

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The original 480-seat open-air theater made its debut in July 1957 with a performance of Madame Butterfly. That summer, Igor Stravinsky visited to oversee the production of The Rake's Progress. In July 1967, a fire demolished the theater; a new open-air theater seating 1,889 was dedicated the following June. The theater's is situated on a bluff, with the audience facing west toward an ever-changing horizon of sunsets and thunderstorms. Over the years, rainstorms have drench audiences (and orchestra members), requiring occasional cancellations, postponements, or extended intermisions. During extensive renovations and upgrading between the 1997 and 1998 seasons, a controversial roof structure was added offering better protection (the sides remain open to the elements), with fewer storm-related problems but with more limited landscape vistas. The theater now seats 2,128 people. The theater was renamed in John Crosby's honor after his death in 2002.

Related Topics:
Madame Butterfly - Igor Stravinsky - The Rake's Progress

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Since 2001, the company has been under the direction of Richard Gaddes who took over from John Crosby. Alan Gilbert was named the company's first music director in 2003.

Related Topics:
Richard Gaddes - Alan Gilbert - Music director

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The company's season runs annually from the beginning of July to the end of August, with four or five operas presented in rotating repertory.

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