SAD END FOR LYRA
Opera company shuts doors
After three decades of music, Ottawa’s Opera Lyra has ceased operations.
The announcement was made in a statement released by the company’s board of directors on Wednesday afternoon.
“It is with deep regret that we have decided to cease operations, effective today. There will be an immediate shutdown of the current performance season, the 31st in the company’s history.
“The Board will now review options on how it may adjust its future operations,” the board said in a media release.
“The challenge facing the company is that revenues are not sufficient to cover costs.
“All opera companies in Canada generate revenues from four sources: ticket sales, government grants, philanthropic donations and commercial sponsorships.
“In Opera Lyra’s situation, revenues from each of these streams have been consistently below expectations, resulting in cash shortages and an unsustainable deficit.”
The first production of the season, The Barber of Seville, did not meet expected ticket sales, and overall subscription sales were down, as well.
That was a surprise for the company’s general director, Jeep Jeffries.
Barber ended up about $185,000 short of budget, despite what Jeffries said were several positive developments in the weeks leading up to the opening at the end of September.
The company had hired a well-respected new artistic director, Timothy Vernon, and a new production director.
It had a local singing star, Joshua Hopkins, in the lead. It brought in a talented conductor to lead the National Arts Centre Orchestra.
And it had a version of The Barber of Seville that had been successful everywhere it had been before.
All of which has left Jeffries mystified as to why the production did not succeed.
There will be an immediate shutdown of the current performance season … The Board will now review options on how it may adjust its future operations.
“We knew the news was disappointing going in to the Barber, but a lot of things that normally happen with a show where the sales curve takes off, they never really happened, and that’s kind of a bafflement, to he honest with you. I’m not sure we really understand why.
“To put it in a nutshell, we were looking for a production that we thought would be attractive to our existing subscribers and maybe help us attract new audience. We had wonderful Canadian talent. We revamped our marketing campaign, brought in a new agency, and our media day had a great turnout.
“We did, as near as I can tell, everything right, and The Barber is not an obscure show at all — it’s one of the top 10 most-performed and best-loved (operas) and bestselling shows,” he said. “To have it do so poorly is a puzzlement.
“We saw it coming, and we tried to stop it, but nothing worked.”
In the end, the shortfall in cash flow meant the company could not continue to operate, he said. The board made the decision Tuesday evening, after much discussion, to shut the doors. The company was also still struggling with a debt of more than $500,000, which became increasingly hard to manage.
This means the staff of nine, including Jeffries, is out of work on Friday. And it means that more than 100 artists will not be working on the remaining productions of the Opera Lyra season, including two short Canadian works that were to open on the weekend, a children’s opera and a production of Beethoven’s Fidelio in the spring. Some of the singers in the weekend productions were on the train to Ottawa for rehearsals when they heard the news.
The National Arts Centre, which has a had a long relationship with Opera Lyra, expressed regret at the decision.
Christopher Deacon, the managing director of the NAC Orchestra said in response: “We know how hard Opera Lyra’s Staff and Board worked to sustain the company. This is an extraordinarily sad day for the performing arts in Ottawa.”
The NAC says patrons with Opera Lyra tickets can exchange them or receive a voucher for an NAC production during the 2015-16 season, subject to availability. Patrons are urged to contact the NAC box office in person or at exchanges@ nac-cna.ca.
Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson, who used to sit on Opera Lyra’s board, called the decision “unfortunate. ... It’s very sad because they were with us for over 30 years.
“We’ll have to see who’s owed money and try to see if there’s any way of the organization rising again, to perhaps bring opera back to the city.”
Jeffries was hired to run the company after it had suspended operations in the 2011-12 season amid a financial crisis brought on by runaway debt. He brought with him a reputation as a fixer of broken companies, but in this case, he could not make it work, even though he was able to reduce the debt substantially.
In its statement, the Opera Lyra board expressed pride in the company’s contribution to the “musical culture, education and training across the National Capital Region.”
The board mentioned several factors that have contributed to its current situation.
“Our core problem is that revenues have not grown to cover the costs of presenting high quality opera on the stage of the National Arts Centre. There are challenges in all revenue areas, including: major shortfalls in commercial sponsorships, modest shortfalls in private philanthropy, reductions in funding from the federal and provincial governments and, recently, weaker ticket sales.
“The decline in paying audiences for Opera Lyra (a trend that is reportedly affecting other performing arts in Ottawa-Gatineau) is a key difficulty. Opera is an expensive musical genre. It combines orchestral music, vocal performance, and dramatic staging with sets, lighting and costumes.
“Other opera companies in North America have also had recent financial problems and several closures, notably in San Diego, New York and Hamilton.”
The board did hold the door open slightly to a future for opera in the capital, suggesting lower cost productions or wider partnerships as possible alternatives.
It will continue to meet to examine these other options, Jeffries said.
We’ll have to … see if there’s any way of the organization rising again, to perhaps bring opera back to the city.