A groundbreaking, three-opera commissioning initiative that engages Black creators to develop new works celebrating Black stories.

The first program of its kind, the Black Opera Project seeks to illuminate the resilient spirit and vibrant heritage of the Black American experience. The project is the outgrowth of Cincinnati Opera’s previously announced grant from the Mellon Foundation to support the development of three fully staged, full-length operas by creators of color focused on uplifting stories about the Black community.

“The launch of the Black Opera Project marks the fruition of dreams long held by Black artists like me. While I was singing the title role in our production of Porgy and Bess in 2019, Cincinnati Opera leaders invited my fellow cast members and I into a conversation about opera’s future. During the discussion, I, along with several of my colleagues, expressed concerns that there were no positive stories that truly represented the African American culture in a modern, realistic, and contemporaneously relatable way. I asked the question, ‘When is there going to be an Opera that has the same impact on the operatic stage, that the movie Black Panther had on the big screen?’ My question centered around the obvious void of positive, uplifting, black literature in the operatic canon, and a desperate need to ameliorate that void by creating and developing literature that served as a true representation of the vastness and beauty of the African American experience. To "get it right," we felt that these new works needed to be composed by Black people, written by Black people, directed by Black people, and conducted by Black people. These stories would steer away from the narratives represented in our current offering and would focus on Black Positivity. The leadership team at Cincinnati Opera bought into this idea and vision and took it on as a challenge, fully dedicating themselves to bringing the Black Opera Project to fruition. I’m excited about what this initiative means both for people of color and for opera fans everywhere who’ll get a chance to see what Black Joy looks like on the opera stage. We’re making history and changing our art form for the better.

—Morris Robinson, world-renowned bass and Cincinnati Opera artistic advisor