Celebrating twenty-five independently funded years and over sixty productions, Melbourne’s busiest opera company, Melbourne Opera, is announcing its full 2027 season.
The season opens in February with a new production of Richard Wagner’s Parsifal. This will mark Melbourne Opera’s completion of its history-making ‘Wagner cycle,’ following acclaimed productions of Tannhäuser, Lohengrin, The Flying Dutchman, Tristan und Isolde and individual productions of Das Rheingold and Die Walküre which culminated in three full Ring Cycles at Bendigo’s Ulumbarra Theatre, a regional Australian first.
Then came a landmark opera event in 2025 with Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg at the UNESCO World Heritage listed Royal Exhibition Building.
Parsifal will be led by one of the world’s leading Wagner conductors, Maestro Anthony Negus CBE and acclaimed Wagner director Suzanne Chaundy, who was appointed in the new role of Executive Director for Melbourne Opera in May 2026.
Suzanne Chaundy said:
“With a season focussing on works by landmark composers spanning the nineteenth century, Donizetti, Verdi, Wagner and Puccini, Melbourne Opera is presenting works which challenge, entertain, uplift and transcend. We are immensely proud of this season which is keeping great opera experiences onstage for all Victorians.”
The all-Australian Parsifal cast features a wealth of local talent and role debuts. Australia’s internationally acclaimed Helden baritone Warwick Fyfe will lead the cast in the role of Gurnemanz. Kundry will be sung by Anna-Louise Cole following her recent triumphs as Turandot, Brunnhilde, Sieglinde and Venus with Opera Australia.
Parsifal will be sung by rising Australian Helden tenor Brad Cooper after his outstanding success as Siegfried in Melbourne Opera’s third Ring Cycle. Brad will join rehearsals directly from The Metropolitan Opera House New York (The Met), where he is currently working. Christopher Hillier will sing Amfortas, Christopher Tonkin sings Klingsor and Eddie Muliaumaseali’i sings Titurel.
Suzanne Chaundy’s production also features Melbourne Opera’s full-scale ninety-piece orchestra and a thrilling eighty-voice chorus at Melbourne’s iconic Regent Theatre. Parsifal opens in February for three performances only on 3, 5 and 7 February.
Tickets are on sale now via https://marrinergroup.com.au/shows/parsifal.
Next up, in May, will be a Melbourne Opera Richard Divall Program production featuring opera’s newest and most outstanding young talents, hot on the heels of the sold-out seasons of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro and Cosi fan tutte. A fully staged studio production of Donizetti’s glorious and hilarious The Elixir of Love will be presented at Athenaeum Two complete with orchestra and chorus. These productions serve as wonderful launching pads for the careers of our next generation of opera stars.
In July, the company will present a new production of Rigoletto by award-winning director Katy Maudlin, making her Melbourne Opera debut. This production will be conducted by Maestro Raymond Lawrence after his Verdi triumph with Il Trovatore in 2026. Rigoletto will open on 18 July on Melbourne Opera’s home stage, the Athenaeum Theatre.
Rigoletto features Melbourne Opera audience favourites Christopher Hillier in his role debut as Rigoletto and Rebecca Rashleigh in her debut as Gilda.
Later, in September, and again at the Athenaeum Theatre will be Tosca in a new production by Suzanne Chaundy following her critically acclaimed UK production in 2026. The role of Tosca will be performed by the glorious Elena Xanthoudakis, in a role debut, and tenor Rosario La Spina will sing Cavaradossi following his opening performance of Fedora at La Fenice. Conducted by Raymond Lawrence, Tosca will open on 19 September.
With many other concerts and events on Melbourne Opera’s busy calendar including Mozart by Moonlight at the Royal Botanic Gardens on 21 February and the historic one hundred and third Herald Sun Aria on 2 October, this may be Melbourne Opera’s busiest year yet.
Greg Hocking AM, Founding Director of Melbourne Opera said:
“We are thrilled to be presenting a prolific year of opera productions. The season will feature four full-scale opera productions and other events, offering a wealth of opportunities for Australian artists and keeping Melbourne opera audiences’ calendars full with opera’s most loved works.”
For more information about Melbourne Opera’s 2027 Season and to book tickets, visit the website below.
Website: https://melbourneopera.com/
Socials: https://www.instagram.com/melbourneopera/
Images supplied.
2027 Premiere Dates
3 February | Parsifal | Regent Theatre
21 February | Mozart by Moonlight | Royal Botanic Gardens
May | The Elixir of Love | Athenaeum Two
18 July | Rigoletto | Athenaeum Theatre
19 September | Tosca | Athenaeum Theatre
About Melbourne Opera (MO):
Since forming in 2002, Melbourne Opera has become one of the nation’s leading professional opera companies, with significant community engagement, a large group of philanthropic supporters, a unique national training role, strong regional presence and international tours to China. With founding patrons including Lady Primrose Potter AC, Dame Joan Sutherland OM AC DBE, Maestro Richard Bonynge AC CBE and Greg Hocking AM, the company stages multiple full-scale productions each year on Melbourne’s main stages.
The company gives many young singers and musicians invaluable professional experience at the outset of their careers in the company of distinguished experienced artists, via the prolific Richard Divall Emerging Artists Program (RDEAP).
With a performance history of more than 60 operatic productions, across the traditional and lesser known operatic repertoire, including bel canto, Wagner, Verdi and Puccini, the company has presented several Australian premieres.
In 2023, MO staged a history-making production of Wagner’s Ring Cycle in Bendigo, which attracted audiences from around the world and won Gold in the Festivals and Events category at the 2023 Victorian Tourism Awards. Their widely acclaimed production of Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg was the first opera to be staged in memory at the UNESCO heritage listed Royal Exhibition Building, in 2025.
Leave a Reply