enoa: EMPOWERING OPERA - breaking boundaries for institutions and artists

The „Empowering Opera: breaking boundaries for institutions and artists” project is a new initiative from the enoa (European Network of Opera Academies) which brings together twelve partners from some of the biggest opera institutions in Europe.After ten years of international cooperation in training and creation, the members of enoa now believe that the future of opera in Europe depends on the sector being open to a greater diversity of artists as well as being open to exploring innovative operas telling inclusive stories that reflect the world today. The Empowering Opera project is designed to give the greatest possible diversity of artists the chance to be part of the opera world and flourish professionally. It aims to inspire, support and showcase innovative opera projects which tell new stories that reflect contemporary societies. Its implementation also intends to remove artistic and financial barriers as well as subconscious bias that hinder the appearance of new artistic expressions in all areas of the opera sector, from training and artist recruitment to opera production and programme.It has four complementary and interdependent aspects: a European empowerment and diversification scheme for opera creators and performers, a European think tank for innovative and inclusive opera projects, a new opera commission, production and programme model plus a pilot training programme about equality and diversity issues for figures in the sector.The Empowering Opera project is using these aspects to boost diversity and numbers of artistic expressions throughout the European opera sector and completely transform its practices and working methods.