New York City Opera

New York City Opera (NYCO) is an American opera company and the second largest opera company, after the Metropolitan Opera, in New York City. The company, called "the people's opera" by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, was founded in 1943 with the aim of making opera financially accessible to a wide audience, producing an innovative choice of repertory, and providing a home for American singers and composers. In addition to producing a busy opera schedule, the company has extensive education and outreach programs, offering arts-in-education programs to 4,000 students in over thirty schools. The company has been a part of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts since 1966, however plans announced in May 2011 for the financially troubled company's future include a proposal to leave Lincoln Center and perform in various locations throughout the city. 

During its more than sixty year long history, the NYCO has helped launch the careers of many great opera singers including, Sherrill Milnes, Plácido Domingo, Carol Vaness, José Carreras, Renée Fleming, Jerry Hadley, Catherine Malfitano, Bejun Mehta, Samuel Ramey, Gianna Rolandi, and Beverly Sills, the latter of whom served as the company's director from 1979-1989. Internationally acclaimed American singers who still call NYCO home include David Daniels, Mark Delavan, Mary Dunleavy, Lauren Flanigan, Elizabeth Futral, and Carl Tanner.

NYCO similarly champions the work of American composers; approximately one-third of its repertoire has traditionally been American opera. The company's American repertoire ranges from established works (e.g., Douglas Moore's The Ballad of Baby Doe, Carlisle Floyd's Susannah and Leonard Bernstein's Candide) to new works (e.g., Rachel Portman's The Little Prince and Mark Adamo's Little Women). NYCO's commitment to the future of American opera is demonstrated in its annual series, Vox, Contemporary Opera Lab, in which operas-in-progress are showcased, giving composers a chance to hear their work performed by professional singers and orchestra. The company also occasionally produces musicals and operettas such as works by Stephen Sondheim and Gilbert & Sullivan.

2008 to Present

A note of uncertainty about the company's future emerged in November 2008, when Gérard Mortier, who was scheduled to begin his first official season as General and Artistic Director of the company in 2009, abruptly resigned. The company announced that "The economic climate in which we find ourselves today has caused us both to reconsider proceeding with our plans." Mortier had reportedly been promised a $60 million annual budget, which was cut to $36 million due to the economic climate. Michael Kaiser was appointed to advise the board on a turnaround strategy, including the recruitment of a new general director.

In January 2009, the company announced the appointment of George Steel as general manager and artistic director, effective 1 February 2009. The David H. Koch Theater (previously known as the New York State Theater) underwent major renovations during the 2008-2009 season. During the construction the company did not stage opera in its home at Lincoln Center. Instead, New York City Opera presented a concert version of Samuel Barber's Antony and Cleopatra at Carnegie Hall in January 2009, as well as other concerts and programs around the city, and it continued to make classroom presentations in New York City's public schools. The company presented three concerts at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in 2009, I'm On My Way: Black History at City Opera, One Fine Day: A Tribute to Camilla Williams and a 60th Anniversary concert production of William Grant Still's Troubled Island. In June 2009 Bloomberg reported that the company had incurred a $11 million deficit for the year ending June 2008. Revenue fell 23 percent to $32.9 million, expenses rose 11 percent to $44.2 million.

2009-2010 season

In November 2009, under the leadership of George Steel, the company returned with an opening night program called American Voices consisting of excerpts from American opera, a revival of Hugo Weisgall's Esther, and a new production of Mozart's Don Giovanni directed by Christopher Alden. The spring season opened in March 2010 and included Emmanuel Chabrier 's L'étoile directed by Mark Lamos and Handel's Partenope directed by Andrew Chown; original production directed by Francisco Negrin. The company also continues to collaborate with the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and Opera Noire of New York to highlight the role of opera in African-American history including the programs Opera at the Schomburg, A Tribute to Robert McFerrin, and X, The Life and Times of Malcolm X in February - May. In 2010 New York City Opera's VOX Contemporary Opera Lab featured new works of emerging and established composers at NYU in late April.  The 2010-2011 season collaboration with the Schomburg Center includes "A Tribute to Betty Allen" in February and a concert version of Scott Joplin's opera, Treemonisha, in June 2011.

2010-2011 season

Amongst the rarely performed or more unusual operas, New York City Opera announced the 2010-2011 season which will include a new production of Leonard Bernstein's A Quiet Place directed by Christopher Alden, Richard Strauss's Intermezzo directed by Leon Major, with a new production called Monodramas which is composed of John Zorn's La Machine de l’être, Arnold Schoenberg's Erwartung, and Morton Feldman's Neither. New York City Opera is also staging Séance on a Wet Afternoon, the first opera of Stephen Schwartz, veteran of Broadway musicals including Godspell, Pippin and Wicked.

In addition, the company will feature concert performances including An Evening With Christine Brewer, Lucky To Be Me: The Music of Leonard Bernstein, John Zorn & Friends (with Laurie Anderson, Lou Reed, Mike Patton, Marc Ribot, Dave Douglas and Uri Caine), a family opera concert of Oliver Knussen's Where the Wild Things Are with a libretto by Maurice Sendak and Defying Gravity: The Music of Stephen Schwartz with Kristin Chenoweth and Raúl Esparza.

Vox,Contemporary Opera Lab

Vox, Contemporary Opera Lab (formerly known as Vox: Showcasing American Composers) is an annual concert series dedicated to the development of contemporary American operas. Founded by New York City Opera in 1999, the festival offers composers and librettists the opportunity to hear excerpts of their works performed with professional singers and musicians. Up to twelve excerpts of previously un-produced operas are performed at each festival. Many of the operas that have been presented at Vox have gone on to be presented in full production by New York City Opera and various other opera companies, including Richard Danielpour's Margaret Garner. Since 2006, the Vox performances have been presented at New York University's Skirball Center for the Performing Arts.

World premieres at the New York City Opera

William Grant Still's Troubled Island (1949)

David Tamkin's The Dybbuk (1951)

Aaron Copland's The Tender Land (1954)

Nevit Kodallı's Van Gogh (1957)

Mark Bucci's Tale for a Deaf Ear (1958, first professional production)

Robert Kurka's The Good Soldier Schweik (1958)

Hugo Weisgall's Six Characters in Search of an Author (1959)

Norman Dello Joio's The Triumph of St. Joan (1959, the premiere of the third version)

Robert Ward's He Who Gets Slapped (1959)

Douglas Moore’s The Wings of the Dove (1961)

Robert Ward's The Crucible (1961)

Abraham Ellstein's The Golem (1962)

Carlisle Floyd's The Passion of Jonathan Wade (1962)

Jerome Moross' Gentlemen, Be Seated! (1963)

Lee Hoiby's Natalia Petrovna (1964)

Jack Beeson's Lizzie Borden (1965)

Ned Rorem's Miss Julie (1965)

Vittorio Giannini's The Servant of Two Masters (1967)

Hugo Weisgall's Nine Rivers from Jordan (1968)

Gian Carlo Menotti's The Most Important Man (1971)

Thea Musgrave's The Voice of Ariadne (1977)

Leon Kirchner's Lilly (1977)

Dominick Argento's Miss Havisham's Fire (1979)

Stanley Silverman's Madame Adare (1980)

Thomas Pasatieri's Before Breakfast (1980)

Jan Bach's The Student from Salamanca (1980)

Leonard Bernstein's Candide (operetta) (Opera House Version) (1982)

Anthony Davis’s X, The Life and Times of Malcolm X (1986, first staged production)

Jay Riese's Rasputin (1988)

Hugo Weisgall's Esther (1993)

Ezra Laderman's Marilyn (1993)

Lukas Foss's Griffelkin (1993, premiere of revised version)

Deborah Drattell's Lilith (2001, first staged production)

Charles Wuorinen's Haroun and the Sea of Stories (2004)