LAWRENCE EDELSON

Lawrence Edelson is highly respected not only as a critically acclaimed stage director, but also as a visionary company leader who has created programs in the areas of artist mentorship and new works development that have served as models of innovation for opera companies around the country.

As a Director, Lawrence’s work has been praised for the ability to fuse vivid story telling with deeply expressive imagery. He has been praised by Opera Now magazine as doing a “splendid job of making (opera) relevant and understandable.” His productions have been called “ingenious” and “imaginative” by Opera News, and “stunningly touching and entertaining” by the Washington Post. These diverse productions have included the American Premiere of Telemann’s Orpheus for Wolf Trap Opera; Philip Glass’s Hydrogen Jukebox for Fort Worth Opera; La Traviata for The Minnesota Opera; Il Barbiere di Siviglia for Hawaii Opera Theater; The Cradle Will Rock, The Consul, Sky on Swings, Il Postino, La Fille du Régiment, La Cenerentola, Man of La Mancha and H.M.S. Pinafore for Opera Saratoga; Carmen for Toledo Opera; Little Women for Michigan Opera Theatre; Three Decembers for Virginia Opera; a double-bill of La Serva Padrona and Trouble in Tahiti for the Adler Fellows of San Francisco Opera at Opera Santa Barbara; the New York premiere of Fauré's rarely produced Pénélope for Manhattan School of Music; the Houston premiere of Ainadamar for the Moores School of Music; Cosí fan tutte for Boston University’s Opera Institute at the Huntington Theater; and the World Premiere of The ToyMaker off-Broadway as part of the New York Musical Theater Festival.  He was a guest member on the directing staff of New York City Opera, where he restaged Little Women twice: for the work’s Lincoln Center premiere, and for the company’s tour to Japan. Deeply committed to the mentorship and training of the next generation of operatic artists, Lawrence has also served as the Artistic Director of the Moores Opera Center at the University of Houston and was a faculty member at the International Vocal Arts Institute in Tel Aviv for five years.

Before focusing on Directing and Arts Management, Lawrence enjoyed a performing career in both ballet and opera. He studied voice and musicology at The University of Ottawa, and dance at The Joffrey Ballet School in New York. As a dancer, he performed with Boston Ballet, Ballet West, and BalletMet Columbus.  He has choreographed for ballet and opera companies around the country. As a singer, he appeared in opera, oratorio and musical-theater internationally.

A self-described “arts-entrepreneur,” Edelson is a successful and creative leader with a proven track record of leading non-profit and for-profit companies, and of balancing artistic idealism and fiscal realism. In the for-profit sector, Lawrence founded Pro Musica Tours while still a student at the University of Ottawa. For over twenty year, the company was one of New York City’s most highly respected cultural tourism operators, specializing in educational arts travel programs for student groups. Lawrence completed his Master’s Degree in Performing Arts Administration at New York University, authoring his thesis Opera: The Irrelevant Art: Uniting Marketing and Organizational Strategy to Combat the Depopularization of Opera in the United States. He has consulted on projects for Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC), New York City Opera, Opera Orchestra of New York, MCC Theater, and on the cultural development of Lower Manhattan for New York City council member Alan Gerson.

In the opera field, Lawrence is best known as the founder of American Lyric Theater (ALT). He has been responsible for assembling ALT’s world-renowned artistic staff, and creating the first full-time program for emerging opera composers and librettists in the United States: The Composer Librettist Development Program (CLDP). As Artistic and General Director, he coordinates the diverse artistic programs of ALT, including the CLDP, commissioning of new works, and co-production relationships. At ALT, Lawrence also initiated the Opera Writers Diversity and Representation Initiative (OWDARI), for which he was recognized in 2021 by Musical America as one of the Top 30 Professionals of the Year. A tireless advocate for emerging artists and the diversification of audiences for opera, Lawrence continues to forge collaborations with opera companies across the country. Notable projects at ALT include the development of The Long Walk (Beck/Fleischmann), which premiered at Opera Saratoga in 2015; JFK (Little/Vavrek), which premiered at Fort Worth Opera in 2016; Monkey and Francine in the City of Tigers (Sankaram/Johnston), which premiered at Houston Grand Opera/HGOCo in 2018; Why is Eartha Kitt Trying to Kill Me? (Smith/Johnston), which premiered at Urban Arias in 2018; Murasaki’s Moon (Wiancko/Brevoort), which premiered at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in a production by OnSite Opera in 2019; The Selfish Giant (Assad/Palmer), which premiered at Opera Saratoga in 2023; The Life and Death(s) of Alan Turing (Chen/Simpatico), which premiered at Chicago Opera Theater in 2023; and Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Fallen Giant (Meier/Lewis), which premiered at Opera Modesto in 2024. Lawrence is currently overseeing the development of multiple new operas at ALT, including La Reina (Sosa/Pedroza); The Halloween Tree (Popov/Asaro after Bradbury); She Who Dared (Barnes/Mouton); Working for the Macbeths (Navarro/Yi); and Tevye’s Daughters (Weiser/Fleischmann).

From 2014 to 2022, Lawrence also served as the Artistic and General Director of Opera Saratoga. During his tenure at Opera Saratoga, Lawrence was responsible for rebranding the organization; expanding the the company's young artist program and creating new mentorship opportunities for conductors and directors; diversifying the repertoire presented; and increasing community engagement and education programs year-round. Reviewing the company’s 2018 season, The Wall Street Journal noted that “under the leadership of Lawrence Edelson, Opera Saratoga has redoubled its commitment to producing modern operas, and is doing so at a very high level...polished, immaculately cast, and a stimulating juxtaposition of contemporary compositional voices.” Lawrence was responsible for significantly increasing Opera Saratoga’s artistic profile nationally, while simultaneously increasing income in all areas including an increase in individual giving by over 250%, and an increase in ticket sales by over 60%.

In July of 2023, Lawrence joined Chicago Opera Theater as General Director, a position he now holds concurrent with his role at ALT.