Apollo theater and Opera Philadelphia partner to support new operas by Black artists

By The Associated Press on March 20, 2024.

NEW YORK (AP) – The Apollo theater and Opera Philadelphia announced a five-year partnership Wednesday to support new operas by Black artists.

The two organizations collaborated on the New York premieres of Daniel Schnyder’s “Charlie Parker’s Yardbird” in 2016 and Daniel Bernard Roumain’s “We Shall Not Be Moved” the following year, both after world premieres in Philadelphia.

Composers and subjects for the new works were not announced. An initial five-year term was planned for the partnership.

The Cincinnati Opera is premiering an Afrofuturist-themed production of Kevin Day’s “Lalovavi” on June 19, 2025, and hopes to present a Maria Thompson Corley composition on the life of U.S. Rep. John Lewis in 2026.

5
-4