OPrak takes OPERA America’s 2025 Opera Conference
This spring marked the fourth consecutive year that OPrak has attended OPERA America's annual Opera Conference, a national gathering of opera creators, companies, and board members. We came together for a week of community and discussion on the business of making opera happen. Every year, the Opera Conference explores ways to advance the industry with panel discussions, break-out groups, keynote speakers, and events. With each conversation, we work together to bring a fresh perspective to the time-honored art form of opera.
Image of panel participants Vincent Rutter-Covatto from OPERA America, Marianna Mott Newirth of OPrak, and Ana DeArchuletta from National Sawdust.
This year, as a newly minted professional company member of OPERA America, OPrak had the opportunity to serve on a panel that discussed the very core of our mission; how to include the disability community in opera production. This was a watershed moment for us as a company and for the opera industry at large. For the first time, access, accommodation, and a focus on the voices of people with disabilities in opera were on the agenda.
I was on the ground in Memphis for the conference, while my co-founder, Greg, was at Opera Omaha, working on the team to bring the world premiere of a breakthrough opera, Sensorium Ex, to life. Thanks to the miracle of technology, we served on a hybrid panel discussion that highlighted the challenges and triumphs of creating disability-affirming opera. We were thrilled to see the panel in good attendance. The conversations were thoughtful and filled with insight. I spoke about our experience launching Opera Praktikos four years ago and the lessons learned last winter as we produced There Will Be Cake with an interabled cast and crew. Greg shared about his experience contributing to the Sensorium Ex Codex and participating in a project that is writing new rules for how opera gets done.
Of course, as a hybrid event, we had some technical issues, which became an opportunity to demonstrate real-time adaptability and teamwork. With a quick pivot by our co-panelist, Ana de Archuleta, Managing Director of National Sawdust, and a steady hand from our moderator Vincent Rutter-Covatto from OPERA America, the dialogue became heightened and the room further engaged as we assured everyone on the panel would be heard.
The biggest takeaway was simple and profound; opera is for everyone. Allowing accommodations for disabilities and collaborating with disabled artists can improve the community as a whole. These small steps lead to significant advancements in the opera ecosystem. Our panel discussion at the 2025 Opera Conference was a giant step forward for the industry, for the disabled community, and for OPrak.
