Opera Praktikos at Opera Conference 2023
It's always a treat to explore a new city every year when OPERA America hosts their annual conference. This year, OPERA America hosted its conference in Pittsburgh, PA, in partnership with Pittsburgh Opera. Not only do we get the opportunity to experience the opera community in another city, but it's also an excellent opportunity to connect with industry professionals from across the country! It's always inspiring to hear about all the diverse projects other companies are working on, and it was a pleasure to bring the topic of disability creativity to the conversation.
During the conference, we not only had the pleasure of attending magnificent operas such as Verdi's Macbeth, produced by Resonance Works, and We Shall Not Be Moved, produced by Pittsburgh Opera, but we also attended incredible panel discussions on the changing nature of the industry. As an opera production company working to push the boundaries of what opera can be, we at Opera Praktikos must engage in these ongoing conversations regarding our industry's potential.
The Dramatists Guild Opera Committee held one of the discussions to which we were particularly drawn. They addressed the role of librettists and how the opera industry can begin to adopt the Broadway model, wherein writers achieve parity in billing and compensation. As an NYC-based opera production company, we found this to be an important topic to bring back home and continue to discuss.
While some panels allowed us to find different answers to some questions mulling around the conference, others left us asking even more. One was a breakout discussion inquiring, "Is AI here to stay?" This is a question plaguing almost every industry/professional, especially those who write.
As all of the conversations we had at the conference left us with an updated perspective and new ways of thinking about opera, one panel, particularly, got us thinking of our mission for opera at Opera Praktikos.In a panel led by Mark Campbell and librettist Deborah Mouton, we made a case for greater representation in operas' stories. Most notably, she cited the need for broader representation of the disabled community. A notion that all of us at OPrak joyfully support.
As always, we left this year's Opera Conference with a rejuvenated love for our industry and excitement for the work to come! We are eager to continue discussing disability creativity and proper representation at next year's conference.
