The company and Greater Manchester have confirmed they will be working together to create a new home for the opera company.
It has been confirmed that the ENO will move to its new permanent home in Manchester by 2029, with the announcement marking a period of transition for the organisation as work begins with partners in Greater Manchester and further information about this work as part of their new season announcement will come in May 2024. ENO will stage work in a variety of venues across the Greater Manchester city-region.
Following an assessment process to decide on this new city base, ENO discovered a close strategic alignment of Greater Manchester’s values and vision with its own, the potential opportunities to collaborate with the region’s vibrant arts ecology, and the chance to inspire and create work with and for new audiences and communities in Greater Manchester. Much of the focus on this new partnership will be on the development of new innovations in opera, with ambitious creative collaborations in performance, public health and the development of local talent, in partnership with a range of venues and organisations across the city-region.
This news follows on from the agreement reached by with Arts Council England in July in which £24m was awarded to ENO to enable the organisation to develop an artistic programme in a new base outside of London during the 2024-26 period, while of course continuing with its opera season at the London Coliseum.
Jenny Mollica, Chief Executive Officer (Interim), English National Opera said: “ENO is delighted to confirm the start of our new partnership with Greater Manchester from today. As we continue to transition through significant change, today’s announcement marks an important and defining moment for our remarkable company. This future direction will see us continue to expand our role as a national institution – supporting our mission to create work with and for even more audiences across the country, alongside our annual season at the London Coliseum.”
Meanwhile, Andy Burnham Mayor of Greater Manchester commented: “The ENO is one of the most exciting cultural institutions in the country, and we’re immensely proud to be able to bring them to a new home here in Greater Manchester. We’ve worked closely with them to set out a shared vision for a future in our city-region, where they can continue making groundbreaking opera, foster new collaborations with artists across the North, and bring their award-winning learning and wellbeing programmes to communities here.”
Lucy Frazer, Secretary of State, Department of Culture, Media and Sport, said: “The English National Opera is a treasured national institution and I am pleased that people across Greater Manchester, the North West and beyond will be able to enjoy their captivating performances more easily. I look forward to seeing the exciting new developments in the English National Opera’s journey as they build on this new partnership, level up access to opera up and down the country and create more opportunities for the young people across the North to explore their creative talent.”