English National Opera will relocate to Manchester, after being told it had to move its headquarters out of London if it wanted to keep on receiving funding
by timeoutthreads
English National Opera will relocate to Manchester, after being told it had to move its headquarters out of London if it wanted to keep on receiving funding
by timeoutthreads
6 comments
Honestly a good move IMO. It’s not like this leaves London without a major opera company, and these sorts of institutions are not going to move out of London unless they’re forced to.
Isn’t this the plot of a Yes, Minister episode?
Not being funny, but I can’t really picture the people of Manchester being massive opera fans.
It’s a shame the negative impact that this will have on the performers in London with the reduced season, but great for performers in Manchester getting more opportunities and a chance to grow a new fan base (ENO are especially good at accessible opera). It’s a shame that we can’t have full seasons from the ENO in both!
This is not only a bad move but a fundamentally stupid one.
Firstly, let’s look at ENO. They are largely static company, who own their theatre. There is literally only one city in the UK that can support that kind of company. London. So ENO need to completely change their operating model. That is expensive and unnecessary as they are currently profitable.
Secondly let’s look at their new home. Manchester. Doesn’t have its own opera company. That sounds promising. Oh… wait… it kind of does. Opera North was set up specifically with the remit to do what ENO does for the North of England but with a touring operating model. Based in Leeds, but hey, any major opera company needs big population to draw from.
Is there room for ENO and ON? Absolutely not. So in 10yrs we’ll be one major opera company down on where we are today.
Should you care about this? Probably. You may not like opera, but its a significant cultural asset. More companies mean more opportunities for more accessible shows, and more variety. Fewer compa ies means we just get La Boheme over and over again…
How much do people want to bet that they’ll be bankrupt within 5 years as a result of the Tories forcing them to make this move? Manchester does not have the population, tourism, appeal, or donors to sustain the organisation. You can’t force arts to just up and relocate elsewhere.