Another New York opera company shuts

Another New York opera company shuts

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norman lebrecht

October 30, 2015

First City Opera. Then Gotham.

Now Opera Sacra in Buffalo, upstate New York, has sung its last. For 40 years it has featured to holier side of the dramatic art. The final show is Honegger’s Joan of Arc at the Stake.

Report here from Mary Kunz Goldman.

joan-of-arc-19th-century

Comments

  • Larry says:
    October 30, 2015 at 3:39 pm

    Di Capo Opera and Amato Opera, both in NY City also disbanded in recent years.

    Reply
  • Ge says:
    October 30, 2015 at 4:28 pm

    Opera Lyra in Ottawa has ceased operations, not enough revenues to sustain its season. Lack of bums in seats, lack of corporate sponsors and continuing high cost of facilities rental.
    No other options for opera fans, as few as they are, in the capital city of a leading western nation.

    Reply
  • Alvaro says:
    October 30, 2015 at 5:37 pm

    YES! My thesis that the future is in less ensembles, not more, continues unscathed. There’s no cultural rationale to keep an orchestra where it is not wanted. The market speaks for itself.

    Reply
    • Maddock madstone says:
      November 23, 2015 at 6:19 am

      You did not research the reason for Opera Sacra’s end. I encourage you to educate yourself. Clearly, I never ran into you at any Opera Sacra performances. You must have been too busy commenting on topics of which you know nothing. Your “thesis” is irrelevant in this case: Consider it scathed.

      Reply
  • William Safford says:
    October 31, 2015 at 1:21 am

    I’m sorry to hear that the company is going out of business.

    I *love* Jeanne d’Arc au Bûcher. I heard the NY Phil perform it this past spring. I am going to try to go to one of those Opera Sacra concerts.

    N.B. Buffalo is, indeed, in New York state. But for those who may not be familiar with New York state geography, Buffalo is almost as far away from New York City as you can get while still remaining within the state boundaries. Both Washington, DC and Boston, MA are substantially closer to NYC than is Buffalo; and both Pittsburgh, PA and Montreal, Quebec are about the same distance.

    Reply
  • Gianmaria says:
    October 31, 2015 at 7:15 am

    This is much unfortunate. Every time an orchestra or an opera company shuts down, the cultural level in that region or area suffers from it.
    Alvaro, two comments up, involuntarily nails the problem: market speaks for itself. Trouble is, this should not be considered a market. Culture is not there to make money, there’s no theater or orchestra in the world that does that. Culture is there because it makes for better human beings, which is priceless.
    They knew about this a few centuries ago already, but we’re utterly forgetting about it. http://bit.ly/1MyCbue

    Reply

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