Summer is finally here, and BLO has lots of excitement ahead.
After a season filled with new highs and artistic successes, we kick off the summer with the world premiere of The Wanderer’s Tethering, a BLO commission from City of Boston Poet Laureate Porsha Olayiwola and Boston-based composer Mason Bynes. What excites me about this project is the intersection between art forms – poetry and music; spoken word and sung performance; chamber ensemble and narrative – and the powerful impact they make when telling a story. This project, our second partnership with the Boston Poet Laureate program, embodies and builds on what opera does best: combining many disciplines in one, wholly unique composition.
There’s more ahead this summer, from two outdoor concerts that include the return of BLO Street Stage, to a week-long youth day camp in August that encourages musically inclined kids to create and tell their own musical stories. I encourage you to check out our summer lineup below and join us for the fun.
I am also taking a moment to reflect on this Season, which comes to a close at the end of this month. We brought four distinctive operas to the stage for the first time in three years, showcasing both new and familiar artists while telling compelling, poignant stories. We have welcomed nearly 12,000 people to free programs this season, from our free production of Romeo & Juliet on the Boston Common, to programs at the Boston Public Library, and beyond. And just last month we welcomed audiences to the sold-out New England premiere of Omar, co-commissioned by BLO, which was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music the day after the final performance.
Please know how much I and the BLO team have appreciated your support this year, through your attendance, engagement, and generosity. As we look ahead to the 2023/24 Season, we invite you to join us as we continue to expand the breadth of our programs, strengthen community ties, develop the next generation of audiences and leaders, and truly create opera for everyone.
Stanford Calderwood General Director & Chief Executive Officer Bradley Vernatter