Quebec Opera wants to modernize its approach to attract more diverse audiences to its performance halls.
The 2023-2024 season of the Opéra de Québec will open on October 21 with the presentation of the performance “Lucie de Lammermoor.” Although the work dates back to the 19th century, the general director and artistic director of the Opéra de Québec, Jean-François Lapointe, wants to modernize the product presented to make it more accessible.
“It remains the same opera, but we can give it a new vision through, among other things, the staging and the language we use,” he explains.
For better understanding, the Lucie de Lammermoor concert will also be captioned on a screen above the stage.
Encourage young people to take an interest in it
For several years, the Opéra de Québec has been inviting high school students to the dress rehearsals of its concerts, an initiative that is beginning to bear fruit.
“For many of them, it is their first time going to an opera,” notes Mr. Lapointe. “During the last season I was pleasantly surprised when audience members came to us three times and told us that they had discovered the opera on a school trip and had now subscribed to it,” says the experienced baritone happily.
With only two productions per season, the scope for diversification for the Opéra de Québec is rather limited, but the festival organized during the summer season helps a lot in this regard.
“The Quebec Opera Festival allows us to put on free street shows, which brings people together and makes us much more accessible,” says Mr. Lapointe. “Last year we presented a total of 37 shows per day over the eleven days of the festival; Therefore, we can cover a fairly broad spectrum with our offering.”
Opera stars like to work in Quebec
Since the opera world in Europe is much more developed and lucrative, we rightly wonder what can encourage big names in this discipline, such as the Belgian Jodie Devos – who has already graced the stages of the National Opera from Paris – to be present at a concert on Canadian soil.
“It’s not about the salary anyway!” says Mr. Lapointe without hesitation or laughing. “In addition to our reputation for offering high quality productions, we have a reputation for collegiality and joy; There are no crises or tensions that make work difficult,” he says happily.
The concert in a few words
With his theme, Lucie de Lammermoor is reminiscent of the story of Romeo and Juliet, in which two young lovers from rival families remain faithful until their death.
The Lucie de Lammermoor concert will be presented by the Opéra de Québec on October 21, 24, 26 and 28 at the Grand Théâtre. This is the Opéra de Québec’s first co-production with a major European theater, in this case the Opéra de Tours, a French institution that opened its doors at the end of the 19th century.