ENO: We’ll aim to start up in Manchester
NewsA statement by English National Opera, responding to its loss of funding by Arts Council England. It has been granted £17 million tail-off funds for the next 18 months.
Here’s the ENO response:
Today’s announcement marks the start of a new chapter for the English National Opera (ENO).
For the past four years, the ENO has been reimagining what a modern opera company should look like, building new audiences and reach beyond London.
Whether increasing diversity on and off stage, in the pit and in our audiences, supporting important national institutions such as the NHS in their Covid response with ENO Breathe and increasing our presence on broadcast and digital platforms with brilliant operatic work, the ENO has repeatedly been at the forefront of innovation for the entire opera industry.
Today’s offer of investment from Arts Council of £17 million over the next three years will allow us to increase our national presence by creating a new base out of London, potentially in Manchester. We plan to continue to manage the London Coliseum, using it to present a range of opera and dance whilst maximizing it as a commercial asset.
The ENO has vision and purpose and we aim to support the levelling up agenda by reimagining opera for future generations across England.
You have to wonder why they didn’t try this before.
What? And mess it up North as well. I hope Opera North fight hard to keep them off their patch and get at least a part of the money ENO are losing. They deserve it much more. Many of us will have fond memories going back to Sadlers Wells even before the Coli but what now passes for ENO is a shadow of its former glory.
The Lowry opposed the ROH’s attempt to set up a base in Manchester several years ago.
Will the ENO occupy the Lowry?
There’s the Opera House and the Palace – rennovated for Covent Garden who only visited once in 1982!
It was expected to sell out, but it didn’t.
I was there.
A ridiculous comment. ‘They deserve it much more?’ In your opinion. They will receive their funding too. Companies face the hardest challenges ever now and to kick ENO and take away funding when they are trying to achieve what ACE set out before is wrong. I agree they need to work on things and I don’t always love all the productions, but they are the only company to offer free tickets to under 21s, discounts etc. and their diversity levels are far ahead of other companies.
The irony is that Opera North actually started out as an “offshoot” of ENO…..but I doubt if anyone in this “government” is even aware of that……
Not that old chestnut again!
Manchester has one of the most thriving classical music scenes as you get outside London in this country. How’s it levelling up for ENO to go there? Why not the ever-forgotten Midlands, especially East Mids – you could serve Leicester, Nottingham and Derby from a single base in one of those. Leicester and Nottingham are both in the top 15 most populous urban areas in the UK, it’s not small numbers.
I was thinking just this. Not exactly levelling up to move to the cultural hub of the North is it?!
Opera North go to Nottingham three times a year already!
Opera North will be thrilled at this news.
Frankly I think Opera North can more than compete with a Manchester based ENO, especially as Manchester is only a small part of ON’s touring schedule. Plus, as anyone living in the area can testify, travelling between Leeds and Manchester is next to impossible these days. They might as well be different countries.
Too early to say. Will ENO stay in Manchester? If not (and the company is talking of a ‘base’ in Manchester), Opera North will have to compete in touring venues around the regions.
Perhaps, but don’t discount the brand loyalty (horrible term, I know) that Opera North has. Financially, I’d be surprised if the touring was even a positive to ON. They do it because it’s their remit, I doubt if it makes sense from a money point of view.
‘but don’t discount the brand loyalty’
Fair point.
Yes, and the reason why ENO and Lord Harewood et al set ENON, later to become Opera North – to bring opera to the north, not bring the north to London and tge expense. I suppose that gave ENO, with its huge double chorus at the time, no reason then to tour with ENON/Opera North. Scottish and Welsh of course tour, and Glyndebourne Touring. Different era today from that when ENO went to the Met in the 80s with a fully staged Gloriana and Sarah Walker, Neil Howlett, and other fine British/English singers. This time, only a concert version in London in December.
I live in Ilkley and often go to Manchester by train – when not on strike!
Do you go to Opera North in Leeds by any chance?
Ironically invented as ENON by Lord Harewood and the ENO in 1977/78.
An utterly delusional statement, worthy of the third-rate Board that effectively destroyed ENO.
Not even the hint of any kind of fight back against the ACE decision.
The ENO Board has taken capitulation and incompetence to the level of an art form.
Shame the Board knew nothing about opera or management.
How can they fight back?!
Well said. And I think we all know that Stuart Murphy resigned very recently, knowing his 4 year leadership illusion was about to pop. Knowing so many employees inside the company past and present, it‘s total nonsense that they move to Manchester – it‘s simply a big idea statement to escort their pathetic Board and Murphy out the door, trying to save face as they appoint some new failure to close it all down. The reality is, we all know the full ENO board, Harry Brunjes, and Stuart Murphy have failed to transform this company over the last 4, even 8 years. The list of Murphy‘s lies is nauseating and transparent. There is a reason so many stellar employees ran for the exit door since the day he was appointed . Talk about a man out of his depths and flailing for any desperate decoy. No doubt Harry Brunjes will be again torturing the late night crowd at the Ivy Club with his minor talents on the piano for years to come now. Another reason to get out of London.
With WNO losing a lot of its touring grant maybe it is more sensible for ENO to have a base in Midlands. Crazy to set up base in Manchester which is served by Opera North.
correct.
Enabling ENO to pop down the M40 and play at …… the Coliseum.
Or does ENO have its sights on the weird Factory theatre thingy in Manchester, which talks of ‘opera’ along with other stuff?
The singers and orchestra as freelancers will still be in London! When Glyndebourne or ROH went to the Proms one year – can’t remember which but I was there – it was nearly all my BBC Singers ad hoc colleagues in the chorus! Much cheaper than bringing people on tour. Can’t see ENO ‘poping down’ the M40 when they had years to ‘pop up!’
Very crazy. And audiences for Opera North, as I see as a season ticket holder in Leeds, are struggling for audience in spite of doing the mainstream repertoire.
Where in the so-called ‘Midlands’ ?
As a born and bred Mancunian the only response I can make to this patronising comment about possibly setting up in Manchester by ENO is NO, NO, NO.
Opera North, though based in Leeds have stayed loyal to the region whereas ENO did nothing to question the ACE edict to not tour. They have forfeited the right to now decamp to somewhere they have disdained for decades and, given their track record of failure over the years Manchester, or anywhere else for that matter, is best staying well away from them.
They have been given more than enough opportunities, not to mention million £ lifelines, to prove they deserve to carry on. They have singularly failed to do so. Even out of town tryouts for the MET have fallen flat. Over privileged London opera goers will no doubt be outraged but the rest of us have learned to live without them and so should they!
So you’re saying that, rather than setting up in a different part of England, ENO should just die?
Petulant comment.
“Over privileged London opera goers”? The ROH made two attempts to set up in Manchester, neither went as well as hoped.
Grow up.
Certainly one attempt I know about in 1982. Disaster!
In 2008, the ROH wanted to set up a production base in Manchester.
To cut a long story short, the Lowry objected and the project died.
You are aware that the only reason ON exists is because it started out as ENO North?!
You clearly have a massive chip on your shoulder and as a London Elite opera goer as you so disdainfully put it, I can tell you, I will miss ENO. I know they haven’t always got it right and I won’t argue that everything they do is brilliant. But I and many other people I know have worked there and find it a welcoming, inclusive company that is trying to move forward and counteract the lack of musical education in schools etc by encouraging different backgrounds into opera. It seems to be incredibly en vogue at the moment to ENO bash, but how many things have you seen? When did you last visit? Why do you hate them so vehemently? It is after all, an opera company. And you talk of the elite opera goers but ENO is the only place you can get a free ticket as an under 21, or a discount for under 30s. Need I go on?! Why not direct your fury at the actually elite opera houses?!
Trouble is ENO has always been affordable.ondiners pay a lot more tax into all te coffers simply because London has a huge population, four music colleges, and the National Opera Studio. Most of my life as a Londoner I have either never been able to get into ROH as it’s sold out with so many seats in triple figures so can’t afford it. Or else a cheap ticket for the odd time they do things like Wozzeck and Lulu as it’s half empty for those so tickrts end up hugely reduced. It’s a vicious circle. And do I wantbto go to some cut dkwn version of the Ring in a warehouse with a piano or abtiny orchestra? No! The capital city of the size of London should be able to fund two major opera houses, but ENO and its board have totally lost their way, and ACE appear to behaving like Philistines. After all they also managed to see off Kent Opera at one time. Londoners or those who choose to live and work in London should not be punished. London is where the money is.
A few thoughts from a Manchester resident:
As great as it would be to have an opera company resident in Manchester, my issue is that we’d be saddled with what has honestly become a second-rate, out-of-touch company. The singers and musicians are clearly talented, but there have been so many management missteps that it now seems endemic. There’s also the issue that, despite the fact that surtitles have long existed, they perform EVERYTHING in English, which to me is quite off-putting. I know Opera North and WNO perform some things in English translation, but at least they do it on a case-by-case basis (and mostly only do so for comedies and the Czech or Russian repertoire).
No doubt Opera North would also stop touring to The Lowry in Salford, which would also be a shame, given that they are a much more dependable company.
There’s also the issue of venue choice. The Lowry seems like the most fitting choice (it hosts Opera North, the National Theatre and Birmingham Royal Ballet when they tour), but it’s somewhat out the way, which I believe can cause issues for filling seats. The two standard proscenium theatres in Manchester city centre (Palace and Opera House) are owned by ATG and are dominated by touring musicals, and I doubt ENO will be moving into the long-empty yet suddenly renovated Hulme Hippodrome or Theatre Royal. And if they moved into Factory (which looks like a potential white elephant, if I’m honest), I’m concerned by what the “multi-purpose, flexible” venue would mean for the productions themselves.
“You have to wonder why they didn’t try this before.”
Perhaps because they’ve never been bunged £17m to try before?
Feels like a sensible move by both ACE and ENO.
ENO isn’t going to Manchester.
ENO is going to hell in a handcart.
The £17 million from the Arts Council will be used to make all ENO staff redundant (minus a tiny administrative core). That includes the orchestra.
How can ENO perform, never mind tour, without an Arts Council grant? No NPO funding, no ENO.
England’s national opera company was effectively condemned to death today.
Remarkably, those responsible are still at the helm.
They have become the arts equivalent of Liz Truss’s government.
100% correct. And we knew inside the company that this was coming the day Stuart resigned early, realising his endless headline grabbing ideas never manifested in the ONE THING a great NPO must have – good artistic product onstage. All he had was safe boring work that celebrated everything average about British opera. And agree, 17 million is enough to pay debts and close down. ENO visiting Coliseum is also a naive joke. Anyone in this business knows, that house will want large sit down musicals that play for years on end to maintain building costs. Just like Drury Lane. The UK does not need another opera house, given the the times, we must all face we have smaller opera audiences and thus smaller funding. Brexit. Covid. Putin. …. The arts world is changing. ENO was dead about 8 years ago when Berry robbed it blind, albeit with better art than their current provincial work.
To be honest I’m not sure I want ENO here in Manchester. They are hardly setting the world alight and are way behind current Manchester arts groups.
Maybe best for them to accept that the project failed. Would prefer the money to be spent on WNO and Glyndebourne Touring as they both bring quality opera to the North West.
Good grief! How many grant enabling keywords can you squeeze into one press release?! It demonstrates how far we have fallen as a country when an organisation which has had its entire public funding withdrawn should have to resort to such weasel words to justify its future rather than the excellence of its output.
ENO in Manchester is a joke. This is all a pathetic to save face by ENO’s disastrous leadership under Harry Brunjes and Stuart Murphy. Opera North runs a much better organisation to serve Manchester. Say what they want to try and save face, we all know Murphy is out the door with humiliation and a record of non-stop failure. This company has zero change of surviving. Nor does the UK need ENO any longer. Give the money to Opera North and ROH and The Factory, Manchester. ENO is dead. Congrats Harry Brunjes and Stuart Murphy on murdering it.
Manchester is winning plaudits daily for its culture from respected travel guides and is in another country from the rest of the North. If ENO leaves London, it has to be Manchester.
According to BBC News, Stuart Murphy, ENO CEO, responded to the cut by saying, “I’m slightly confused why we’d have a reduction on an arts company that has so successfully brought in people of colour, brought in young people, and done things like ENO Breathe with the NHS to help people with lung Covid … It will definitely survive, but we are slightly puzzled why they would reduce funding to an opera company that’s doing all the things they need opera to do.”
Perhaps if Mr Murphy and ENO had recognized that producing great opera, rather than focusing on the elements he mentioned, the company’s future grant would have been more generous. In any case, ENO should think itself lucky – in ‘theatre land’, the Donmar has had its support pulled away completely.
I wish people would actually be accurate instead of bashing companies who are being messed around in this disgraceful way – ACE HAVE TOLD ENO to move to Manchester !! They haven’t decided this themselves on a whim! and they will still be performing in the Coliseum- why wouldn’t they when they have sell-out houses??. It’s all laid out in the press release. they are a brilliant company- the ACE have really made a mess of this all. what’s the point of ACE at all? 700 people in offices ? why don’t we get rid of them and give the money to local councils for arts provision ? a team of 50 people who know what they are doing could do the national allocations with boards and independent assessors. and while we are at it, lets rename the ROH what it really is -London State Opera. Why are the ROH accepting ACE funding at all if their top price tickets are £300.00+ and they already raise 80% of their income for millionaires?-let them raise 100% then- it’s only 20 million they have to find and their board and friends have that in loose change.£20 million has disappeared from opera in the UK overnight – hundreds of jobs and livelihoods – not just employees but myriad freelancers. Who in their right mind who calls themselves an operalover and is on this site would want this to happen? Do you think the money they take from ENO and Glyndebourne magically goes to other opera/arts companies instead ? Of course it doesn’t – it disappears forever! the ACE obviously hate opera as an art form- they think it is elitist – however they have chosen to attack the opera company who is the least elitist of all- ENO ! and WNO, equally accessible and touring too! unbelievable.
“if their top price tickets are £300.00+”
No mention of their bottom price tickets, as usual in rants like this.
And you talk of accuracy!
I am amazed at the comments posted. Opera North is excellent but coming to Salford three times a year for 4 or 5 days is not exactly serving the region in my opinion. Think of Germany where nearly every town or city of any reasonable size offers opera. ENO (or the ROH) should be made welcome in Manchester.
“ENO (or the ROH) should be made welcome in Manchester.”
The ROH wasn’t – twice.
Wherever they move, it will be the death of the company as the orchestra and chorus (not to mention many soloists) live in London and its environs and will be be very loath to up sticks, sell houses, uproot families and move on the very dodgy premise offered.
Many of us outside asked why highchair-man Dr. Harry Brunjes and Sky TV/ ENO Board member Philip Edgar Jones pre-appointed Stuart Murphy over more experienced opera industry candidates. (Brunjes’ operatic ignorance was likely never challenged by his two CEO’s equal lack of operatic ignorance – a convenient tactic to protect his tiny ego, but how did that work out for ENO‘s health, Dr. Brunjes?) Even after Murphy was (so the rumour mill goes) *allegedly* terminated from TV Land due to … substance abuse? … repeated accounts of systemic bullying? Who knows what the truth is, but anyone with their head above the sand in the UK arts world knew these rumours before he went in. A great choice for ENO? Approved by the trusty old ACE? Just like Brunjes‘ failure of leadership for 8 years?
Can we request public access to the number of employees who „left“ during Murphy’s 4 year tenure, the same list of NDAs, and the same list of inflated payouts over the last 4 years? It’s amazing to think how much government-tax payer money was likely spent to silence employees within a publicly funded charity. In Africa they call it corruption. In their too white board meetings, I imagine they called it HR. (We hear she “left” too.) But what I always admire in Stuart Murphy wherever he yaps, is how stupid he feels the rest of the world really is below him: does he really think anyone reading this pathetic press release believes his neck-deep-in-sh*t slant? His boyhood is almost endearing: save he just lost hundreds of people their life long jobs. Brunjes should be forced to resign in disgrace, followed by the rest of the Board. I hear they have an opera house in Russia looking for new leadership. Go for it, Murphy! You‘ll be right at home. World-class. Brilliant. Irrelevant.