Mapping Community (through) Opera

 

Researchers:

Allison Chu (Blair School of Music, Vanderbilt University) [email protected]

Katie Gardner (Music and PCI, University of Leeds) [email protected]

Jennifer Q. McGuire (Blair School of Music, Vanderbilt University) [email protected]

Edward Venn (Music, University of Leeds), [email protected]

 

Project Dates

Stage 1: 1 March – 31 July 2026; ‘Opera in Practice: Cultural Engagement, Meaning-Making, and Social Issues Across Contemporary Stages’. Events in Nashville and in Leeds.

Stage 2: 1 Aug 2026 – June 2027. ‘Mapping Community (through) opera’, culminating in conference in June 2027 at Blair School of Music, Vanderbilt University

 

‘Mapping Community (through) Opera’ is predicated on the fact that community opera practices – broadly conceived – are largely marginalised in public, scholarly and industry perceptions. Building on the May 2026 symposium, ‘Thinking with Partnerships’ (hosted by L’ORFEO and involving academics, representatives of opera companies and creative artists), the project brings together students, practitioners, and scholars in panel discussions, research presentations, and performances that together explore and enhance the collaboration’s established interests in understanding trans-Atlantic approaches to opera and community engagement.

Specifically, the project enables rare trans-Atlantic conversations in facilitating, theorising, and measuring the impact of operatic institutions’ community focus. At stake are questions of defining community opera and its aesthetics, tracing historical lineages of communal opera practices, articulating the values of doing such communal work, and examining the significance, impact, and effects of these operatic collaborations.

Project outputs:

Blog ‘Thinking with Partnerships’