Michele StuevenThe LA Opera is alive and thriving, with a robust lineup of programs for its 2026/2027 season, reflecting the diversity of Los Angeles. Through imaginative new productions, world premiere commissions, and inventive performances that preserve foundational works while making them feel fresh, the LA Opera has become one of America’s most ambitious opera companies.
Celebrating 40 years, the LA Opera was established in 1986 and grew directly out of the artistic momentum sparked by the 1984 Olympic Games. Since then, it has grown to become the fourth-largest company in the USA and a leader in artistic innovation while honoring operatic history.
In addition to its mainstage performances at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, the company explores unusual repertoire each season through the LA Opera Off Grand initiative, featuring performances in a variety of venues throughout Los Angeles. LA Opera Connects offers a range of educational programs and community engagement activities that reach people across Los Angeles County.
OperaFest LA will return in April and May 2026, continuing the collaborative celebration of opera across Los Angeles. First launched in 2024 alongside the OPERA America Conference and World Opera Forum, the festival spotlights the city’s rich and diverse opera landscape.
OperaFest LA brings together leading companies, including Beth Morrison Projects, LA Opera, Long Beach Opera, Overtone Industries, Roy and Edna Disney CalArts Theater, Synchromy, The Industry, The Wallis, and USC Thornton School of Music.
Get tickets soon, performances sell out fast. Here are some highlights; the full schedule can be found here.
John Holiday as Akhnaten
Photo: Cory Weaver
The Wallis – OperaFest LA Kickoff Panel and Performance
Join us at The Wallis on Saturday, April 11, at 4:00-6:00 PM PT for the official kickoff event of OperaFestLA. This special afternoon will feature a panel conversation with one representative from each participating company, offering insight into the works presented during the festival and the artistic vision behind them. The event will also include preview performances from partners’ OperaFest LA presentations, offering a first glimpse of the bold range of music and storytelling that defines this year’s festival. April 11th at The Wallis.
LA Opera – Falstaff
For fans of classic comedy, dashing disguises, Shakespearean twists, and good old Italian opera, Falstaff is a can’t-miss hoot. Sir John Falstaff is a bumbling knight short on cash, so he hatches a scheme to marry rich. Too bad he happened to send both (married) targets the same love letter. Now Alice Ford and Meg Page are set on teaching Falstaff a lesson, and it’s not long before quite a few angry villagers join in. Verdi’s laugh-out-loud romp through merry old England delivers delightful music, witty schemes, and even a surprise dip in the River Thames. April 18th – May 10th at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.
LA Opera – James Conlon Farewell Concert
Over a remarkable 20 years as LA Opera’s Music Director, James Conlon has made tremendous contributions to the musical life of Los Angeles. Now, join us in celebrating his legacy with a special one-night-only concert devoted to his favorite composers. Operatic superstars and an array of special guests join the LA Opera Orchestra for an evening of Mozart, Verdi, and Wagner on Friday, April 24. Following the concert, the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion stage transforms into a celebratory gala honoring Maestro Conlon. Gala tickets are sold separately. April 24th at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.
LA Opera’s 2013 staging of Falstaff (with Ekaterina Sadovnikova as Nannetta) Photo: Robert Millard
LA Opera – Cathedral Project (Noah’s Flood)
One family, a rowdy boatload of animals, and a storm that will change the world as they know it. Maestro James Conlon conducts a cast of hundreds in the family-friendly one-act opera Noah’s Flood. LA Opera‘s professional artists will collaborate with over 300 amateur musicians—all ages, all skill levels, and drawn from across LA County—to present two free performances of Benjamin Britten’s beloved opera at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, located in downtown LA. Reserve your complimentary seats for a charming tale of family, faith, and perseverance. May 8th and 9th at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels.
LA Opera – Les Talens Lyriques
French sensation Les Talens Lyriques are back with the best of Baroque. Conductor and founder Christophe Rousset leads the acclaimed Paris-based chamber ensemble, known worldwide for their revivals of music history’s great masterpieces. Join us Sunday, May 24, for Handelian Heroes, a cornucopia of musical delights starring countertenor Key’mon Murrah in his first LA Opera appearance since 2023’s acclaimed The Last Dream of Frida and Diego. The Colburn School’s Zipper Hall steps back in time to the 18th century with works by Handel, including selections from Ariodante and Julius Caesar in Egypt. May 24th at Zipper Hall.
LA Opera – The Magic Flute
LA Opera’s acclaimed production of The Magic Flute is not just an opera; it’s where live action meets hand-drawn animation — no wonder it’s the most seen opera adaptation in the world. Follow two unlikely heroes on a quest to save a princess, featuring Mozart’s catchy score and dazzling hand-drawn animations. Armed with enchanted bells and (you guessed it) a magic flute, Prince Tamino sets off to rescue his lady love, the Princess Pamina—only to find that things aren’t what they seem, and the Queen of the Night who sent him on his quest just might be plotting his doom instead. May 30th – June 21st at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion.
LA Opera’s 2019 presentation of The Magic Flute, with Zuzana Marková as Pamina and Theo Hoffman as Papageno. (Photo: Cory Weaver)
Long Beach Opera – Central Park Five
Join LBO for a special evening celebrating the upcoming commercial recording of Anthony Davis’ Pulitzer Prize-winning opera, The Central Park Five. Since we commissioned and premiered the work in 2019, it has been produced by companies across the country to widespread critical acclaim. The evening will feature live performances by original cast members and the composer, alongside reflections on the opera‘s remarkable journey — and on LBO’s commitment to bringing ambitious, provocative, and relevant new operas into the world. April 11th at 440 Elm, Long Beach
Overtone Industries – Original Vision
Incubator program Original Vision presents new operas in-development with mentorship by O-Lan Jones and Fahad Siadat. Jones is one of “the Luminaries” in “Tim Burton: Life in the Line,” and was called “an uncategorizable legend” by the press.
The fifth Original Vision presents works by Samara Rice, Brian Sonia-Wallace, O-Lan Jones, Murphy Severtson, and George Landau-Pincus. Time Is the Enemy follows a terminally ill man whose estranged wife’s work on a time machine catapults him into an interdimensional plane where future and past collide. MINE vents the epic day-to-day thoughts and feelings of Imogene, teased out into music, speech, and movement, where old friends, lovers, enemies, worries, and passions take hold. Carcinize! begins with a female pilot’s crash-landing onto a deserted island. While a crash is often an ending, here it is the beginning, as the crabs and the pilot become one and many. Stage direction by Jones and Livia Reiner. Music Direction by Siadat. April 24th and 25th at Highways Performance Space.
The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion (Courtesy LA Opera)
Synchromy
HYSTERIA Composer: Molly Pease | Librettist: Divya Maus
Hysteria is a new opera by composer Molly Pease and librettist Divya Maus that transforms the historic diagnosis of “female hysteria” into a story of reclamation and empowerment. Merging haunting vocal textures, experimental soundscapes, and deeply human storytelling, the work examines how emotion, identity, and the body intersect under systems of control. Pease’s evocative score blurs boundaries between classical, electronic, and improvisational music, while Maus’ libretto reimagines “madness” as resistance and release. Hysteria invites audiences into an immersive, transformative experience that confronts cultural taboos and celebrates the power of self-expression. May 17th, First Congregational Church of Los Angeles.
The Industry – Listening Parties
The Industry’s Listening Parties blend live performances with recorded work and speculative conversation centered on the future of opera as a multidisciplinary art form. These curated yet casual evenings have featured artists that include black futurist Camae Ayewa (aka Moor Mother), Aaron Turner from the post-metal band Sumac, composer and percussionist Guillermo E. Brown, extreme vocalist Carmina Escobar, scholar Michael Ned Holte, and mixed-media practitioner Matana Roberts. Composer Veronika Krausas (Hopscotch, Ghost Opera, The Mortal Thoughts of Lady Macbeth) directs, composes for, and produces multi-media events that incorporate her works with dance, acrobatics, and video. In April, she curates an evening of her past and current productions, featuring live performances and archival footage of projects influenced by tarot, circus arts, Shakespeare, and the ghost realm. Invisible Cities, the first opera by Grammy-winning composer Chris Cerrone, was staged by The Industry in Union Station in its world premiere in 2014. Currently a member of The Industry’s artistic advisory group, Cerrone has since become known for work characterized by a subtle handling of timbre and resonance, a deep literary fluency, and a flair for multimedia collaborations. In May, he presents works that center the voice, including selections from his opera In A Grove and the Roomful of Teeth commission Friday’s Saints. April 16th & May 15th at Monk Space.
USC Thornton Opera – The Turn of the Screw
The USC Thornton Opera Program and USC Thornton Symphony present The Turn of the Screw, an opera in three acts by Benjamin Britten with a libretto by Myfanwy Piper, based on the 1898 novella by Henry James. Sung in English, the production is conducted by Brent McMunn and directed and designed by Ken Cazan, with costumes by Elena Flores and lighting by David Jacques. Performances will take place at the Bing Theatre on the USC University Park Campus on April 22 and 23 at 7:00 pm. Tickets are available through the USC Ticket Office online, by calling 213-740-4672, or at the theater box office. April 22nd and April 23rd at the Bing Theatre.