Kentucky Opera

Kentucky Opera produced its first full season since the pandemic shutdown. As with all shows, each production was supported by programming & community partnerships to link deeper societal themes with each work. Through la boheme, Kentucky Opera and its partners explored housing instability and access to health care; maria de buenos aires spotlighted how to better support our immigrant communities and create a deeper sense of belonging and uplift their voices in civic dialogue & practice; la cenerentola involved our local foster care & adoption systems to highlight what we can all do to support these children & adults who care for them.

Kentucky Opera opened a new civic home, the Opera center for cultural health, to the community in december 2022. This building, set at the edge of louisville's historic redlined neighborhoods, is accessible to major bus lines and highways and supports the launch of robust partnerships, performances, and new and expanded programs that contribute to building a compassionate, open-minded, and vibrant community. In addition to being a resource for communtiy programs and second stage for additional performances, this building is also a shared resource for other local nonprofits' use.

Amplify your voice series celebrates the voices of historically marginalized communities. Kentucky Opera commissioned a cycle of 5 civil rights songs. These songs, were premiered to a sold-out (free) crowd, were paired with historical civil rights songs sung by professional singers and the volunteer "juneteenth jubilee choir" as the kick off event for a city wide, week-long juneteenth jubilee festival.