Opera Columbus has announced its 2026–27 season, a five-production slate built around the company’s 45th anniversary and the national commemoration of America’s 250th birthday. General Director and CEO Julia Noulin-Mérat described the season as “a bold re-examination of American identity through ambitious storytelling,” noting that at 45, the company is “confident, collaborative, and unafraid to take risks.”

The season opens with Pirates! The Penzance Musical (November 6–8, 2026 at the Palace Theatre), a New Orleans-set reimagining of the Gilbert and Sullivan classic with jazz and blues influences, presented as a regional premiere following its Broadway run, in co-production with the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts. December brings a community-focused Messiah Sing-Along at breweries, cafés, and gathering spaces throughout Columbus. Puccini’s The Girl of the Golden West (La fanciulla del West) follows February 26 and 28, 2027 at the Southern Theatre, conducted by Opera Columbus Principal Guest Conductor Everett McCorvey and directed by Kenneth Overton, offering an American frontier drama of risk and redemption. The season’s marquee production is The Shining (April 16–18, 2027), an opera by Paul Moravec and librettist Mark Campbell based on Stephen King’s novel, timed to the book’s 50th anniversary.

The season concludes May 16, 2027 with the Cooper-Bing Competition at the Southern Theatre, the organization’s international vocal competition for emerging artists established in 1983, which awards a $10,000 grand prize to one of five finalists. Subscription packages and individual ticket information are available through operacolumbus.org.

Source: BroadwayWorld