Bronx Opera (BxO) is an opera company in the Bronx, New York. It was founded in 1967 by artistic director and music director, the conductor Michael Spierman. The company is a member of the New York Opera Alliance.The Bronx Opera Company, New York Opera Alliance
The company performs two operas a year, one lesser known work, and an opera from the standard repertoire. All productions are sung in English with full orchestra and chorus."Bronx Opera marries Figaro to English lyrics" by Nick Cavell, Riverdale Press, April 30, 2015 Additionally, the company presents concerts of opera excerpts throughout the year. The company's opera orchestra is increased to full-size to form the fully professional Orchestra of the Bronx which gives two free concerts every year.
Opera performances are at Lehman College's Lovinger Theatre and Hunter College's Kaye Playhouse in Manhattan's Upper East Side; concerts are given in the Bronx and surrounding areas from Long Island to Delaware County."Our Mission Statement", Bronx Opera
Origins In 1966, a group of musicians were attempting to put together a performance of Handel's Messiah. While this performance never happened, it was the genesis of what became the Bronx Opera. Michael Spierman, a recent graduate of New York University's University Heights campus in the Bronx (now Bronx Community College of the City University of New York) took the core of the group that was to perform the Messiah and combined it with his intention to form an opera company that would be based at the Bronx NYU campus. This organization was to be known as the Heights Opera. Under this name the group first performed on November 24, 1967, at Vladeck Hall of the Amalgamated Housing Cooperative; the opera was Mozart's Così fan tutte.
Repertoire YearComposerOpera"Past seasons", Bronx Opera1967MozartCosì fan tutte1968MozartThe Abduction from the Seraglio1970Gilbert & SullivanIolanthe1970MozartThe Marriage of Figaro1971VerdiLa traviata1971WeberDer Freischütz1972MenottiThe Medium1972MozartThe Impresario1972RossiniThe Barber of Seville1973HumperdinckHansel and Gretel1973MozartDon Giovanni1974BrittenAlbert Herring1974MozartThe Magic Flute1975DonizettiThe Elixir of Love1975OffenbachBa-ta-clan1975SchubertThe Conspirators1976CoplandThe Tender Land1976Gilbert & SullivanThe Pirates of Penzance1976MozartCosì fan tutte1977AuberFra Diavolo1977VerdiLa traviata1978DonizettiDon Pasquale1978Vaughan WilliamsSir John in Love1979MozartThe Abduction from the Seraglio1979OffenbachOrpheus in the Underworld1980FloydSusannah1980GounodThe Doctor in Spite of Himself1981Mussorgsky/BlattThe Fair at Sorochinsk"Opera: Bronx Company" (review of Abu Hassan and The Fair at Sorochinsk) by John Rockwell, The New York Times, January 18, 1981; "Blatt" is Josef Blatt (1906, Vienna – 1999, Green Valley, Arizona) Blatt's obituary, The University Record (University of Michigan), March 15, 19991981WeberAbu Hassan1981MozartThe Marriage of Figaro1982Vaughan WilliamsHugh the Drover1982MozartThe Magic Flute1983NielsenMaskarade1983VerdiUn giorno di regno1984SmetanaThe Two Widows1984MozartDon Giovanni1985OffenbachBluebeard1985VerdiLa traviata1986WeberDer Freischütz1986MozartCosì fan tutte1987MooreThe Ballad of Baby Doe1987DonizettiThe Elixir of Love1988Vaughan WilliamsSir John in Love1988MozartThe Abduction from the Seraglio1989SmetanaThe Secret1989RossiniLa Cenerentola1990OffenbachLa belle Hélène1990MozartThe Marriage of Figaro1991DonizettiDon Pasquale1991Gilbert & SullivanTrial by Jury1991MooreThe Devil and Daniel Webster1992FloydSusannah1992RossiniThe Barber of Seville1993MozartCosì fan tutte1993SmetanaThe Bartered Bride1994MozartThe Magic Flute1994VerdiUn giorno di regno1995CoplandThe Tender Land1995Gilbert & SullivanThe Yeomen of the Guard1996MechemTartuffe1996DonizettiThe Elixir of Love1997MenottiThe Medium1997MozartDon Giovanni1997SchubertThe Conspirators1998J. StraussDie Fledermaus1998Vaughan WilliamsHugh the Drover1999MozartThe Abduction from the Seraglio1999NielsenMaskarade2000BlitzsteinRegina2000DonizettiDon Pasquale2001RossiniThe Barber of Seville2001WeberDer Freischütz2002MozartThe Marriage of Figaro2002SuppéBoccaccio2003LehárThe Merry Widow2003SmetanaThe Bartered Bride2004RossiniL'equivoco stravagante2004VerdiLa traviata2005MenottiThe Consul2005PucciniLa bohème2006ChabrierAn Incomplete Education2006MozartCosì fan tutte2006PurcellDido and Aeneas2007BizetCarmen2007CoplandThe Tender Land2008LeoncavalloPagliacci2008MozartThe Impresario2008OffenbachOrpheus in the Underworld2009MozartThe Magic Flute2009SmetanaThe Two Widows2010DonizettiDon Pasquale2010Mahler/WeberDie drei Pintos2011AuberFra Diavolo2011MozartDon Giovanni2012HumperdinckHansel and Gretel2012Vaughan WilliamsThe Poisoned Kiss2013PucciniLa bohème2013RossiniLa gazza ladra2014MechemThe Rivals2014VerdiLa traviata2015BrittenAlbert Herring2015MozartThe Marriage of Figaro2016BlitzsteinRegina2016RossiniLa Cenerentola2017Vaughan WilliamsSir John in Love2017VerdiFalstaff2018MozartThe Abduction from the Seraglio2018WeberDer Freischütz2019MenottiThe Consul2019Gilbert & SullivanThe Mikado2020MozartDon Giovanni2021MozartThe Impresario (film)2022Gilbert & SullivanTrial by Jury (film)2022MozartLa clemenza di Tito2023PoulencDialogues of the Carmelites2023Weill/Gershwin/HartLady in the Dark2024Gilbert & SullivanIolantheIolanthe, 2024 program2024PucciniGianni Schicchi2024RossiniIl signor Bruschino2025HumperdinckHansel and Gretel2025MozartCosì fan tutte
References
External links
"Opera performances", BronxNet