The Big Bang: New Opera is Taking America by Storm

In America, traditional, stuffy operas are out, and new, more racy operas are in. Now that is not to say that Puccini's Madame Butterfly and Verdi's La Traviata will never be performed again. They are classics and the basis on which contemporary opera originated. However, a decline in ticket sales and opera popularity has forced composers to develop new ideas to capture the American public's attention.

It has been speculated that the popularity of opera in America is dwindling. The 2005 Metropolitan Opera Annual Report supports this theory. A summary of the income and expenses from the past ten years is seen in the image to the left. According to the report, the 2004-2005 season "continued to languish below the pre-9/11 levels" ending with a deficit of $833,000. Because the Metropolitan Opera has the most press coverage of any opera house in the country, with an annual attendance of over 800,000 and a $200 million dollar budget, people look to the Met as an example of opera in America. However, there are hundreds of smaller opera houses throughout the country that are prospering and growing. In fact, according to OPERA America, The National Service Organization for Opera, the number of opera companies has increased by 60% since the 1970's, reaching a record high of 125, making the U.S. one of the global leaders in opera. The reason for this is that Americans are now embracing a wider variety of opera. The newer, smaller opera houses are starting to produce more adventurous, modern operas. And while most of these opera houses hold only a fraction of the Metropolitan's 4,000 people, they are bringing in more revenue and attendance is higher.

The reason for the change in style in new operas is simple: the older, more formal styles of opera were starting to be considered art forms meant only for the elite. And the population attending these operas was getting older. The artistic directors were forced to think about what was going to happen in ten years when the opera going population had passed away and a new generation had emerged. Since over 80% of the funding for opera houses in America comes from public donors and not the government, the opera houses had to insure that their popularity did not dwindle, because with dwindling popularity comes a decrease in funding. So the leaders of the opera houses came up with a simple solution: create operas that had not been done before that would appeal to the younger generation of Americans.

Producing new operas seems like it would be a relatively easy task. However, for opera houses such as the Metropolitan Opera, it is just the opposite. The Metropolitan Opera has to get all works approved by their board members, who censor what their company produces. Also, the Metropolitan's performance schedule is planned eight years in advance, which makes it hard to fit in new productions. Because of this, there are now a growing number of smaller opera houses nationwide. It is simply easier to produce contemporary operas in these smaller opera houses. They do not have to report to board members and their schedules are usually planned only three years in advance, which gives them more room to fit in new productions.

Another venue for new operas is at the collegiate level. Educational institutions are more able than big opera companies to take risks and therefore are beginning to produce operas that are attracting more attention. For example, Ken Cazan, the Opera Stage Director and associate professor of vocal arts at the University of Southern California, is in the middle of producing a new opera entitled Miss Lonelyhearts, written by composer Lowell Liebermann and librettist J.D. McClatchy. This controversial new opera based on the 1933 novella by Nathanael West features nudity, violence, sex, and a scene where the main character assumes a crucifix pose. Miss Lonelyhearts first premiered at The Julliard School last year and then twice at the University of Southern California in the spring of 2007. After the California premier, image seen at the right, Mr. Cazan says that "for weeks [he] had people calling [him]." Some were outraged and some sang his praise. However, whatever the comment, the opera definitely attracted attention and had people engaged. This was exactly the response Mr. Cazan was looking for. He realizes that in order to keep audiences interested, performers must come out with "bold new works." The opera will also premier at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music next February.

With growing support from audiences and monetary support from donors, opera houses nationwide are flourishing. A new genre is being produced that is revolutionizing the way people view opera. It is no longer a form of entertainment only for the wealthy. Instead, it has become a typical Friday night activity for the general populace. People are beginning to say goodbye to the long lines at the movie theatres and starting to welcome the fabulous art that is opera.