Faced with unprecedented disruption, opera companies and artists created, innovated, and adapted — demonstrating new possibilities for our art form and our relationships with the public. What comes next has the potential to redefine opera for decades to come.

Watch select sessions from the Minneapolis conference and Virtual conference below.

MINNEAPOLIS CONFERENCE

Highlights from the Opening Session

• Nadege Souvenir, Board Chair, Minnesota Opera
• Ryan Taylor, President/General Director, Minnesota Opera
• Marc A. Scorca, President/CEO, OPERA America

Originally presented in Minneapolis on Wednesday, May 18, 2022.

Opera’s Mission for the 2020s

• Jayme Alilaw, Soprano & Executive Coach
• Torrie Allen, President and CEO, Arts Midwest
• Ann Meier Baker, Director of Music & Opera, National Endowment for the Arts
• Alejandra Valarino Boyer, Director, Ravinia's Steans Music Institute
• Khori Dastoor, General Director & CEO, Houston Grand Opera
• Eric Jolly, President and CEO, Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation
• Kelly Kuo, Associate Artistic Director, American Lyric Theater 

Originally presented in Minneapolis on Wednesday, May 18, 2022.

Dismantling Opera’s Elitism

• Eric Broker, Marketing and Communications Director, Minnesota Opera
• Greg Cunningham, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer, U.S. Bank
• Carlos García León, Individual Giving Manager, Cincinnati Opera
• Laura Kaminsky, Composer
• Lauren Medici, Director of Engagement Programs, Opera Omaha
• Nadege Souvenir, Board Chair, Minnesota Opera 

Originally presented in Minneapolis on Thursday, May 19, 2022

Dynamics of a “Successful” Season

• Afton Battle, General Director, Fort Worth Opera
• Antonio C. Cuyler, Director of the M.A. Program & Associate Professor of Arts Administration, Florida State University
• Barry Kempton, Artistic & Executive Director, Schubert Club
• William Menefield, Composer, Assistant Professor, Jazz Studies, University of Iowa
• Alison Moritz, Stage Director
• Maggey Oplinger, General Director, Florentine Opera
• Karen Quisenberry, Vice President, Production, Minnesota Opera 

Originally presented in Minneapolis on Friday, May 20, 2022

Making a Case for Opera After Transformational Federal Support

• Dayna Frank, President & CEO, First Avenue Productions
• Diedre Henry-Spires, Senior Advisor for COVID Programs, U.S. Small Business Administration
• Ben Krywosz, Artistic Director, Nautilus Music-Theater
• Vanessa Rose, President & CEO, American Composers Forum
• Tony Shivers, Director of Government Affairs, OPERA America
• Reed W. Smith, General Director, Anchorage Opera
• Ross Willits, Managing Director, Minnesota Citizens for the Arts  

Originally presented in Minneapolis on Saturday, May 21, 2022

Keynote by Kao Kalia Yang

• Kao Kalia Yang, Author, Public Speaker, Teacher

Originally presented in Minneapolis on Wednesday, May 18, 2022

Empowering Women to Strengthen Opera Companies

• Afton Battle, General Director, Fort Worth Opera
• Rebekah Diaz, Director of IDEA Initiatives and Community Engagement, Pittsburgh Opera; Founder and Principal Consultant, Diaz Inclusion Consulting
• Julie Gilbert, Partner, McKinsey & Company 
• Piper Gunnarson, Executive Director, OnSite Opera
• Julia Noulin-Mérat, General Director, Opera Columbus
• Robin Whiffen, Executive Director, Against the Grain Opera  

Originally presented in Minneapolis on Friday, May 20, 2022

Cultures and Opera: Holding Space

• Autumn Coppaway, Technical Director, Vancouver Opera
• Brent Michael Davids, Composer
• Kyle Gray, Manager of Community Relations & Government Affairs, Santa Fe Opera
• Rebecca Hass, Director of Engagement Programs and Partnerships, Pacific Opera Victoria
• Claudine Martinez, Pueblo Opera Cultural Council, Santa Fe Opera
• Renee Roybal, Pueblo Opera Cultural Council, Santa Fe Opera

Originally presented in Minneapolis on Thursday, May 19, 2022

Racial Justice in Action

• Rebekah Diaz, Director of IDEA Initiatives and Community Engagement, Pittsburgh Opera; Founder and Principal Consultant, Diaz Inclusion Consulting
• Quodesia Johnson, Social Justice Advisor, OPERA America
• Takesha Meshé Kizart-Thomas, Director of Development, The American Opera Project
• Garrett McQueen, President, TrillWerks Media

Originally presented in Minneapolis on Thursday, May 19, 2022

Robert L.B. Tobin Director-Designer Showcase

• Cheri Prough DeVol, Lighting Designer
• Daniel Ellis, Stage Director
• Maureen Freedman, Costume Designer
• Angela M. Kahler, Costume Designer
• Alison Moritz, Stage Director
• Allison Plamondon, Choreographer
• Christine Tang, Lighting Designer

Originally presented in Minneapolis on Thursday, May 19, 2022

VIRTUAL CONFERENCE

Opening Session 

• Dr. Maria Rosario Jackson, Chair, National Endowment for the Arts
• Quodesia Johnson, Social Justice Advisor, OPERA America
• Marc A. Scorca, President/CEO, OPERA America

Originally presented virtually on Monday, June 27, 2022

Report from Minneapolis

• Jayme Alilaw, Soprano and Executive Coach
• Frank Luzi, Vice President of Marketing Communications & Digital Strategy, Opera Philadelphia
• Andrew Morgan, General Director, Hawai'i Opera Theatre
• E. Loren Meeker, General and Artistic Director, OPERA San Antonio
• Andrea Puente-Catán, Director of Major Gifts and Hispanic Initiatives, San Diego Opera
• Marc A. Scorca, President/CEO, OPERA America

Originally presented virtually on Monday, June 27, 2022

The Future of Immersive Programming in the Arts

• Alan Brown, Principal of WolfBrown

Originally presented virtually on Monday, June 27, 2022

Beyond Marketing: Building New Audiences Through Social Media

• Babatunde Akinboboye, Baritone, Influencer, HipHopera Artist 
• Sarah K. Ivins, Director of Marketing and Communications, OPERA America

Originally presented virtually on Tuesday, June 28, 2022

Community-Centric Fundraising, Part 3:
Getting Started

• Dan Cooperman, Chief Advancement Officer, OPERA America
• Yvette Guigueno, Director of Development, Pacific Opera Victoria
• Liz Grubow, Board President, Cincinnati Opera
• Allison Rabbitt, Director of Development, Seattle Opera

Originally presented virtually on Tuesday, June 28, 2022

Examining Unwritten Rules

• Julie Bernard, Trustee, Opera Carolina
• Cheryl Slay Carr, Trustee, Nashville Opera
• Kathy Cressy, Trustee, Opera Orlando
• David Salerno Owens, Trustee, Portland Opera
• Marc A. Scorca, President/CEO, OPERA America

Originally presented virtually on Tuesday, June 28, 2022

Organizing for Justice

• Maria Brea, Director of Community Engagement & Outreach, Latina Women in Opera
• Quodesia Johnson, Social Justice Advisor, OPERA America
• Garrett McQueen, President, TrillWerks Media
• Nina Yoshida Nelsen, Mezzo-Soprano, Activist, and Founding Member, Asian Opera Alliance
• Wendy Shenefelt, Director of Cultural Organizing at Alternate ROOTS

Originally presented virtually on Tuesday, June 28, 2022

Time for Transformation:
Social Justice, Digital Engagement, and Recovery in the Arts & Culture Sector

• Jen Benoit-Bryan, PhD, President, Slover Linett Audience Research
• Laura Lee Everett, Chief Programs Officer, OPERA America
• Madeline Smith, MA, Project Director & Research Operations Lead, Slover Linett Audience Research

Originally presented virtually on Tuesday, June 28, 2022

Focus on the Future: New Work Grantees

• Maria Brea, Director of Community Engagement & Outreach, Latina Women in Opera
• Quodesia Johnson, Social Justice Advisor, OPERA America
• Garrett McQueen, President, TrillWerks Media
• Nina Yoshida Nelsen, Mezzo-Soprano, Activist, and Founding Member, Asian Opera Alliance
• Wendy Shenefelt, Director of Cultural Organizing at Alternate ROOTS

Originally presented virtually on Tuesday, June 28, 2022

SAVE THE DATE FOR
OPERA CONFERENCE 2023!

Christopher Hahn, the general director of the Pittsburgh Opera, offers words of welcome to the steel city, Pittsburgh, PA.

Opera Conference 2023 will take place May 17-20, 2023. 

Conference Sponsors

Program Support

Mellon Foundation 
Bank of America
American Express
Tobin Theatre Arts Fund