New Orleans Opera Announces 83rd Season

PRESS RELEASE

August 14, 2026

Subject: New Orleans Opera Announces 83rd Season

New Orleans Opera Expands Year-Round Programming with

 Distinguished & Emerging Artist Concerts

With a theme of Rebels, Rogues & Redemption, the New Orleans Opera Association launches an ambitious 2026–27 season that takes opera from the grand stage to some of the city’s most iconic settings.

Grand Opera returns to the Mahalia Jackson Theatre on November 20th with a 90-minute, semi-staged production of Giuseppe Verdi’s Il Trovatore. In March 2027, NOOA’s second annual Opera Festival will present opera throughout the city, with staged and concert performances planned in venues ranging from the New Orleans Jazz Market to St. Louis Cathedral to a Mississippi Riverboat.

“New Orleans is a city that lives and breathes music, and we want this season to feel like it belongs here,” explained Producing Artistic Director Clare Burovac. “Our theme, Rebels, Rogues & Redemption, celebrates the larger-than-life characters and unforgettable stories that make opera so compelling, while our programming takes us into some of the places and traditions that make New Orleans unique. From the Mahalia Jackson Theatre to the French Quarter, from the river to the historic Opera Guild Home, we’re bringing great singers and great stories to audiences in settings that are distinctly New Orleans.”

The season also brings audiences closer to the music in the intimate setting of the gorgeous Gilded Age Opera Guild Home, featuring a yearlong series of concerts highlingting internationally acclaimed artists as well as rising operatic talent.

The Distinguished Artist Series opens on October 8 &10 with Kameron Lopreore and Sarah Jane McMahon in a tribute to the late, longtime NOOA stage director David Morelock. Internationally acclaimed soprano Amanda Majeski follows January 14 & 16, with tenor Blake Friedman closing the series May 13 & 15 in celebration of Jewish Heritage Month.

For the holidays, Broadway and opera rising star Knox Van Horn performs A Classical Christmas on December 5 & 9, featuring operatic and contemporary holiday favorites amidst a seasonal ‘winter wonderland’ of decorations in Opera Guild Home.

Throughout the season, NOOA’s Emerging Artist Concert Series, presented in partnership with the Women’s Guild, will showcase some of the region’s most promising young operatic talent on select Sundays from 4–6 p.m., beginning August 16.

“An evening at the opera is about more than the performance—it’s an experience,” said NOOA Executive Director Stephanie Laurent. “Through our Distinguished Artist and Emerging Artist series, we’re creating opportunities to enjoy a beautiful setting, a glass of wine and extraordinary music in a more intimate setting. It’s a chance to experience something new and discover an evening that feels elevated, unexpected, and distinctly New Orleans.”

Tickets and concert packages are available through the New Orleans Opera Association at www.neworleansopera.org. A complete schedule of performances is attached.