Curtis Opera Theatre Profiled in Opera Now

Photo Credits (left to right): Pete Checchia, Wide Eyed Studios

The Curtis Institute was founded in 1924 by Mary Louise Curtis Bok, who “had a bold vision for the music landscape at the time: to create a conservatory where the most promising young musicians could develop their talents without financial barriers.” It boasts a small enrollment of 160, comprising only 25 vocal and opera students. “Because Curtis is smaller, undergraduates and graduate students and post-graduate students all work together in one cohort,” says Miloš Repický, director of the opera department. “They take studio class together, they take acting classes together, they take movement together. They’re in productions together. They need to understand that they’re here to support each other and to be constructive in the learning.”

Curtis also supports the careers of its graduates in numerous ways, including through Curtis Artist Management, which provides management and global representation for a select group of alumni and faculty artists. In May, Curtis announced the signing of the first two singers to the program: Sarah Fleiss and Juliette Tacchino. 

Hattie Butterworth visited in April for Curtis’ production of Bernstein’s Candide, directed by Emma Griffin. She writes, “Griffin’s colourful production brought a sense of the connection between singers and ease at which they threw themselves into the operetta’s score.” The 2025-26 season of the Curtis Opera Theatre features productions of Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo, Kaija Saariaho’s La Passion de Simone, and Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

“It’s clear Curtis offers a unique gift,” Butterworth writes. “There’s a sense of heritage and tradition with a dedication to the new.”

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Photo Credits: Wide Eyed Studios