Yep, this handsome gent. You’ve definitely seen him around! Helios drives his chariot across the sky every day; he knows it’s a never-ending journey and so do we. At Helios Opera, we’re all about innovation and moving the industry forward with a sense of urgency and direction, just like the Helios of yore. But we also want to be a positive force in the industry, both for audiences and artists alike. It’s not enough just to drive the industry forward; we want to do it in a way that is compassionate, inclusive, and – dare we say it? – optimistic. As you page through our new website, you might notice a lot of sun, light, and bright imagery, in fact!

We took the risk of forming during a pandemic, producing digital opera, because we wanted to try to do something constructive with this extremely difficult time. We wanted to bring art to a troubled world, and we wanted to help the many artists who found themselves suddenly unable to do what they love most by empowering them to make work within the confines of their own homes. We also knew that someday the sun would rise on a day in the future when we would finally return to a new normal and that our industry would once again return to work enriching, delighting, and moving audiences hungry for the chance to connect. 

As that day draws ever nearer, we realize that the opera industry still has a lot of work to do on the fronts of inclusion, gender parity, and pay equity. That’s part of why we started our new IG Live series Bright Spots: Operamakers Changing the Game, which features some of the folks who are leading the charge behind the seismic shifts that opera is beginning to experience. Recent guests have included Mel Bacaling, who is doing fantastic anti-racist work at Boston Lyric Opera, Opera Omaha and others, and composer Theodore Christman whose company, Christman Opera Company, pioneered the program Voices Raising Voices, which promotes the work of composers from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds. We hope that Bright Spots brings attention to the work that still needs to be done in the opera world while also celebrating the many hardworking visionaries that are creating change at this very moment.

Finally, you might notice that we’ve got a new tagline! ::Drumroll please:: Helios Opera: Lighting the Path Forward. The future of opera is called in question all the time, but here at Helios we know that it’s possible for the art form to change with and respond to the times, both in form and content. The carefully curated digital content we create as part of our Modular Opera Project initiative is just one of the ways we think opera can evolve and draw in new audiences who might not already know that they love this dynamic art form. 

But the tagline isn’t just about moving forward, it’s about moving forward with the help of a gentle glow of light that shows you the way, step by step, until you get where you’re going. That’s how we want you to feel when you’re engaging with us, whether it’s through email, while preparing to watch our content, or as a participant in one of our post-show discussions. You are welcoming here, whatever your previous knowledge of opera is or what your preconceptions about it are, and we want your experience with us to be as pleasant and seamless as possible, even if we sometimes tackle some hard questions with our work!

If this sounds exciting to you, make sure to take some time today to explore our new website, including our exciting new Modular Patron Program, which for as low as $5 a month, allows you to combine the benefits of membership and philanthropy and grants you access to lots of our shows and programs before the general public. 

Keep shining!

The Helios Team