Opéra de Montréal facts for kids
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| Industry | Opera |
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| Predecessor | Opéra de Québec |
| Founded | 1980 |
| Founder | Jean-Paul Jeannotte |
| Headquarters | Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, Montréal, Canada |
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Key people
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The Opéra de Montréal is an opera company located in Montreal, Canada. It performs amazing opera shows at the Place des Arts theatre complex in downtown Montreal. This company was started in 1980 and first focused on operas performed in French.
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History of Opera in Montreal
Before the Opéra de Montréal began in 1980, there were many attempts to create a lasting opera company in the city. For example, the L'Opéra français de Montréal performed nearly 600 shows between 1893 and 1896. Other groups like the Montreal Opera Company (started in 1910) and the Société Canadienne d'Opérette (started in 1921) also brought opera to the city.
The Variétés Lyriques, another company, gave over 1000 performances between 1936 and 1955. The Opera Guild of Montreal also presented shows from 1942 until 1959. Later, the Opéra du Québec operated in Montreal from 1971 to 1975. These earlier efforts showed that Montreal loved opera.
Founding the Opéra de Montréal
The current Opéra de Montréal was officially started in 1980. It was created by the Quebec government, five years after the Opéra du Québec closed. Jean-Paul Jeannotte was the first director and led the company until 1989.
In 1988, the Opéra de Montréal started using bilingual supertitles. These are translations of the opera's words shown above the stage, helping everyone understand the story. By 1989, the company's money situation became stable. Jacqueline Desmarais also created the Montréal Opera Guild to help raise money and support the Opéra.
Notable Performances and Awards
The Opéra de Montréal has received many awards for its productions. In 1997-1998, it won two Opus Awards for its show Jenůfa. It won two more Opus Awards in 2004 for Bartók's Bluebeard's Castle.
In 2007, the company worked with Opera Australia to present Lakmé. At that time, it was recognized as one of the 15 largest opera companies in North America. A special outdoor show of Puccini's Madame Butterfly in 2008 attracted 33,000 people!
The Opéra de Montréal continued to win awards. In 2010, it received an Opus Award for a double show of Leoncavallo's Pagliacci and Puccini's Gianni Schicchi. In 2013, it won another Opus Award for Jake Heggie's Dead Man Walking. All these performances take place at the Place des Arts theatre complex.
l'Atelier lyrique
In 1984, a special program called l'Atelier lyrique was created. Its goal is to help young opera singers and artists develop their skills. Yvonne Goudreau was the first director of this program.
Chantal Lambert became the director in 1990 and led the Atelier for many years. In March 2023, Jennifer Szeto was appointed as the new director. She had previously worked with the company as an artist in residence in 2012.
Artistic Directors
- Jean-Paul Jeannotte (1980–1989)
- Bernard Uzan (1989–2001)
- Bernard Labadie (2002–2006)
- Michel Beaulac (2006–present)
General Directors
- Jacques Langevin (1983–1986)
- Bernard S. Creighton (1986–1988)
- Bernard Uzan (1988–2000)
- Kimberly J. Gaynor (2001–2002)
- David Moss (2003–2006)
- Pierre Dufour (2006–2016)
- Patrick Corrigan (2016–present)
Atelier Lyrique Directors
- Yvonne Goudreau (1984-1990)
- Chantal Lambert (1990-2023)
- Jennifer Szeto (2023-present)
See also
In Spanish: Ópera de Montreal para niños
