About Us
History
Founded in 2006, Boston Midsummer Opera creates vibrant opera experiences designed to ward off the summer doldrums. Showcasing winning young professional singers, BMO's productions are sung in English, are fully staged with orchestra, and are accessible and reasonably priced. They run the gamut from comic to tragic, and feature well-known and unfamiliar operas to delight young and old alike.
In 2009, Drew Minter's antic version of Così fan tutte placed Mozart's characters in a Connecticut country club where the two idealistic young couples warred with each other on and off the tennis court and fell prey to the cynical middle aged staff members.
In 2008, BMO staged Peter Brook's The Tragedy of Carmen, a gripping adaptation of Georges Bizet's famous opera, which pares down the cast to four singers and three actors while retaining Bizet's most celebrated music. BMO used a special English translation by Sheldon Harnick (Fiddler on the Roof, She Loves Me).
BMO ’s 2007 "Tales of Offenbach" featured a frothy revue of the operas of Jacques Offenbach, highlighting Les Brigands, Tales of Hoffman, Orfée aux Enfers, and La Périchole, and culminating in the famous “Can-Can.”
The 2006 production of "Marriages of Mozart" was described by Richard Dyer of The Boston Globe as "providing entertaining introductions to Mozart's masterpieces. Witty director Drew Minter also tweaked the standard English translations to make them racier and more colloquial.
Mission Statement
Boston Midsummer Opera seeks to introduce New England audiences to young professional singers of exceptional talent through a fresh, inventive approach to opera. Sung in English and imaginatively staged, Boston Midsummer Opera productions aim to make opera both accessible and affordable while adhering to the highest musical and dramatic standards. Our goal is to widen the audience for opera by mounting dynamic productions with vibrant artists that will attract new listeners as well as appeal to discriminating opera fans.
Executive Director and Chairman
Artistic
Drew Minter, Artistic Director
Susan Davenny Wyner, Music Director and Conductor
Administration/Production
Ellen Golde, Acting General Manager
Amy Weissenstein, Associate General Manager and Production Manager
Board of Directors
Production Photos
Photos: Così fan tutte
Photos: The Tragedy of Carmen
Photos: The Tales of Offenbach
Photos from our first season, The Marriages of Mozart
