Opera Grants for Women Stage Directors and Conductors
Opera Grants for Women Stage Directors and Conductors support Professional Company Members in increasing the number of women in the field.
Through contract fee support, the program encourages member companies to contract women in key artistic leadership roles.
OPERA America is committed to pursuing gender equity in all facets of the field. Stage directors and conductors who identify as women have been consistently underrepresented in opera productions, on average representing fewer than 30 percent of the directors and fewer than 15 percent of the conductors in a season.
Opera Grants for Women Stage Directors and Conductors are supported by the Marineau Family Foundation.
Grant Details
Women Stage Director and Conductor Grants support up to 50 percent of contract fees, up to $10,000, for women stage directors or conductors hired for the first time by applicant companies.
Eligibility: OPERA America’s Professional Company Members based in the United States may apply.
Professional Company Member staff can log in to view grant guidelines and application deadlines. To learn about becoming a Professional Company Member, visit Organizational Membership.
Meet the Grantees
2023
Round-One Grants
Company | Artist | Work |
---|---|---|
Boston Baroque |
Mo Zhou, director | Iphigénie en Tauride |
Heartbeat Opera | Shadi G., director | Tosca |
HERE | Tara Ahmadinejad, director | mɔɹniŋ (morning//mourning) |
Houston Grand Opera | Emily Wells, director | Another City |
Los Angeles Opera | Leah Hausman, director | Pelléas et Mélisande |
Opera Baltimore and OperaDelaware | Kaley Karis Smith, director | La traviata |
Opera Birmingham | Aija Penix, director | dwb (driving while black) |
Utah Symphony | Utah Opera | Stephanie Rhodes Russell, conductor | La fille du régiment |
Learn more about grant projects in the press release.
Round-Two Grants
Company | Artist | Work |
---|---|---|
Arizona Opera | Sarah Ina Meyers, director | Frankenstein |
Cincinnati Opera | Stephanie Rhodes Russell, conductor | The Knock |
Opera Parallèle | Yayoi Kambara, director | The Emissary |
White Snake Projects | Roxanna Myhrum, director | MONKEY: A Kung Fu Puppet Parable |
Learn more about grant projects in the press release.
2022
Round-One Grants
Company | Artist | Work |
---|---|---|
Anchorage Opera |
Shannon Davis, director | Missing |
Florida Grand Opera | Jeri Lynne Johnson, conductor | Agrippina |
Guerilla Opera | Cara Consilvio, director | I Give You All My Home |
IN Series | Claron McFadden, conductor | Desdemona |
Kentucky Opera | Judith Yan, conductor | Orfeo ed Euridice |
Opera Cultura | Paula Nava Madrigal, conductor | Frida |
Opera San José | Crystal Manich, director | West Side Story |
Portland Opera | Nataki Garrett, director | The Central Park Five |
Learn more about grant projects in the press release.
Round-Two Grants
Company | Artist | Work |
---|---|---|
The Glimmerglass Festival | Chloe Treat, director | Common Ground |
Houston Grand Opera | Louisa Muller, director | The Wreckers |
Pocket Opera | Margo Hall, director | A Pocket Magic Flute |
Opera Saratoga | Emily Senturia, conductor | Sky on Swings |
Learn more about grant projects in the press release.
2021
Company | Artist | Work |
---|---|---|
Cincinnati Opera |
D. Lynn Meyers, stage director | Fierce |
The Glimmerglass Festival | NJ Agwuna, stage director | The Magic Flute |
Houston Grand Opera | Lidiya Yankovskaya, conductor | Carmen |
Long Beach Opera | Jenny Wong, conductor | Pierrot lunaire/Voices from the Killing Jar |
Michigan Opera Theatre | Kaneza Schaal, stage director | Blue |
New Camerata Opera | Kimille Howard, stage director | Refractions |
Opera Columbus | Tiffany Chang, conductor | Tosca |
Opera Steamboat | Maria Sensi Sellner, conductor | The Barber of Seville |
West Edge Opera | Indre Viskontas, stage director | Katya Kabanova |
Learn more about grant projects in the press release.