Opera North

Opera North
Opera in the north of England

Based at the Grand Theatre in Leeds, England, Opera North is a British opera company founded in 1977. It began as an offshoot of English National Opera, and was known as English Opera North until 1981. It was founded with the specific plan in mind of bringing expertly produced and elegantly enacted opera to northern England. At that point in time, the northern portion of the country had no regularly performing opera company.

Opera North's focus is on creating new and exciting productions of classic operans, and ensuring that lesser-known works have the opportunity to be heard. With three decades of performance experience, Opera North has made a name for itself as one of the most imaginative and unique companies in all of Europe. It has a history of collaborating with cutting-edge artists and expanding into a variety of media.

Opera North promotes the idea that opera should be explored from many different angles, and one way that this innovative company continues to set the bar for unique performances is with 'Opera North Projects'. The Projects cover a range of performances through different media, including everything from literature to exhibitions to film.

Education is also another important part of life for this opera company. Every year, Opera North funds creative projects that involve over 3000 children and teenagers from the north of England, providing them with valuable insight into the artistic process, and a glimpse into the world of performing arts. This experience guides the students as they consider their futures, ensuring a bright young generation of audiences and future artists. Opera North is especially known for its work with special needs students, and creates inclusive projects that reach out to people from all walks of life. These range from introductory opera workshops, to explorations of opera rehearsals geared towards high school students.

Opera North has its own orchestra, the Orchestra of Opera North, which is also known as English Northern Philharmonia. This orchestra has a significant repuitation in its own right and is the only orchestra in Britain which performs throughout the year in concert halls as well as opera houses. The Opera North Chorus is similarly versatile, and performs throughout the year as a separate choir, in addition to its chorus work with the opera.

Although Opera North is based in Leeds, it also presents regular seasons in Nottingham at the Theatre Royal, Salford at the Lowry, and at Theatre Royal in Newcastle.