Henry Street Chamber Opera

Established: 2001

General Director: Caroline Stoessinger

Music Director: Neal Goren

The Henry Street Chamber Opera is an opera company committed to presenting works written to be performed in intimate spaces. Breaking the tradition that Grand Opera has set, HSCO is also bringing opera to downtown manhattan. Their home is the Harry De Jur Playhouse a 375 seat jewel-box theater which is part of the Abrons Arts Center, running under the auspices of The Henry Street Settlement, a non-profit organization that provides a variety of resources to the Lower East Side community.

Production History

2001:
Il Sogno di Scipione
(United States Premiere)
Music: W.A. Mozart (K.126)
Libretto: Pietro Metastasio based on Somnium Scipionis by Cicero.
Stage Direction: Christopher Alden
Musical Direction: Neal Goren

2002: Double Bill
Les Malheurs d'Orphee (1924)
Music: Darius Milhaud
Libretto: Armand Lunel

Dido and Aeneas (1689)
Music: Henry Purcell
Libretto: Henry Purcell

Stage Direction: Laurence Dale
Musical Direction: Neal Goren

At the time of this writing (which will be updated) They are planning to produce another double bill of Bohuslav Martinu's The Tears of The Knife and The Voice of The Forest in the Fall of 2003.

Update Feb 2003: The Henry Street Chamber Opera is now defunct after their most recent double bill of Martinu. The Henry Street Settlement has decided that their continued association with the opera company is not in their best interests. They have resurfaced the name Gotham Chamber Opera Company.