From 17 to 20 June, the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía in Valencia hosted the 18th Annual Conference of Ópera Latinoamérica (OLA), bringing together representatives of opera houses, festivals and companies from Ibero-America and Europe. Under the theme Theatres: Audiences and Ideas for the Future, this edition focused on key areas such as artistic programming and content for audiences, sustainability and investment in culture, and communication in the performing arts—highlighting both present and future challenges for the sector.

 

A total of 120 people attended this 18th edition of the OLA Annual Conference, including directors and representatives from opera houses, festivals and companies across Ibero-America—among them 39 member organisations of the OLA network—as well as cultural managers, artistic programmers, and public and private sector leaders from 15 countries.

 

Over the course of four days, the various halls and auditoriums of the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía hosted sessions that generated new conclusions and progress on the themes that OLA has been developing in recent conferences.

 

 

From the consolidation of the OLA Women’s Forum —now with a robust schedule including mentorships and new meetings—to the concrete actions stemming from the Declaración de Barcelona, three years after its launch—such as new co-productions and the circulation of innovative Latin American operas—as well as the formation of specialised committees and new information sources to define future goals and actions, the 18th OLA Annual Conference encouraged future-oriented thinking on topics such as sustainability, artistic programming, and gender and environmental challenges.

 

Many of these topics will be revisited in 2026 during the 19th OLA Annual Conference, to be held from 16 to 19 June and hosted by the Teatro Municipal de Lima (Peru).

 

Three Years after the Declaración de Barcelona

 

On Wednesday 18 June, the opening session was held jointly by OLA and the Spanish organisation Ópera XXI (ÓXXI) to review the agreement between both institutions, formalised in the Declaración de Barcelona established in 2022.

 

In April 2022, more than 60 organisations from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Mexico and Uruguay—represented by Ópera Latinoamérica—gathered with Spanish institutions led by Ópera XXI at the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona, during the Ibero-American Meeting of Theatres, to reflect on the global transformations underway in geopolitical, humanitarian, social, environmental, technological and cultural spheres.

 

The meeting laid out lines of action to generate proposals of value for Ibero-American communities, resulting in seven proposals focused on encouraging circulation, co-production, the transfer of best practices, and raising awareness about the social and environmental role of opera and performing arts organisations.

 

“For the past three years, OLA has been focused on how our work contributes to social transformation. In Barcelona 2022, following the pandemic, we came together to holistically re-evaluate our institutions and to design a joint action plan for the years ahead, based on our shared history and challenges,” said Paulina Ricciardi, Executive Director of OLA, during the opening session.

 

 

Among the projects that both organisations have launched since the declaration is a Mentorship Programme, also part of the OLA Women’s Forum, which began in the first half of 2025. This pioneering programme is supported by the Chilean organisation Mujeres Empresarias and aims to support and enhance the professional development of women working in OLA member institutions who are at early or mid-career stages.

 

In parallel, co-productions and the circulation of operas between Latin America and Spain have been strengthened—for example, Domitila, a chamber opera by Brazilian composer João Guilherme Ripper, premiered in 2000 in Rio de Janeiro and programmed for the 2024–2025 season at the Teatro de la Zarzuela.

 

 

Another opera that joined this transatlantic exchange is Patagonia by Chilean composer Sebastián Errázuriz, co-produced by Teatro Biobío and Teatro del Lago, winner of the Ópera XXI Award for Best Latin American Opera in 2023, and presented at the Madrid theatre in its most recent season.

 

In addition, the Auditorio de Tenerife will open its 2025–2026 season with Yerma, an opera by Heitor Villa-Lobos, in a new co-production with the Teatro de la Zarzuela and the Festival Amazonas de Ópera in Manaus, Brazil.

 

 

Aligned with the promotion and dissemination of new Latin American operatic creations, OLA has also launched the Explora Iberoamérica project. Supported by CAF – Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, this new section on OLA’s website and social media presents a catalogue of new productions and operas created in Latin America.

 

Recent examples include Llacolén, with music by Víctor Hugo Toro and libretto by Gonzalo Cuadra, premiered at the theatre of the Universidad de Concepción (Chile); Oposicantos by Brazilian composer Flo Menezes, premiered in the current season of the Theatro São Pedro in São Paulo; and La vorágine by João Guilherme Ripper, a co-production between the Centro Nacional de las Artes and La Compañía Estable.

 

Looking ahead, both organisations agreed to create the OLA Sustainability Forum to address key environmental challenges facing member theatres, festivals, and companies.

 

Finally, the joint session established a follow-up committee made up of two members from each organisation, who will meet to review current actions and define new priorities according to the evolving needs of both networks. The committee includes José Luis Rivero, Artistic Director of the Auditorio de Tenerife; Conceçao Amaral, President of the Teatro São Carlos in Portugal; Andrea Caruso, General Director of the Theatro Municipal de São Paulo; and Gerardo Grieco, General Director of the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires.

 

Artistic Programming: Where Tradition Meets New Perspectives

 

The first day began with a conversation between Joan Matabosch, Artistic Director of the Teatro Real in Madrid, and Carmen Gloria Larenas, General Director of the Teatro Municipal de Santiago. The talk, titled Conversación off, provided a relaxed and generous setting in which attendees could explore the logic, challenges, criteria, and overall approach to programming—setting the stage for the sessions that followed.

 

 

For Matabosch, tradition is an asset that must be carefully managed, but it must not become a limitation. “Programming each season at the Teatro Real—with classic titles such as Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg alongside new proposals such as Tejas verdes by Jesús Torres, as seen in our 2024–2025 season—must respond to today’s needs and the community it serves, while also considering tradition,” he said.

 

Matabosch stressed the importance of offering a diverse and current repertoire and avoiding repetition, noting that the great classic operas “were disruptive in their time and reflected society as it was then.”

 

Regarding his work with stage directors, Matabosch explained that his choices are based on deep knowledge of their language and vision: “It’s about understanding the artist, getting to know them, and knowing that their way of telling stories aligns with the theatre’s vision. That’s why I trust them with complete freedom.”

 

Gender Equity and Diversity: Reflections from the OLA Women’s Forum

 

Two years after its creation at the 16th OLA Annual Conference in Manaus, Brazil, the OLA Women’s Forum opened its sessions to the public for the first time, inviting all OLA members and conference participants to share challenges and opportunities regarding women’s leadership in the performing arts, and to outline collaborative action lines.

 

 

The session featured a keynote by Julia Sánchez Abeal, CEO of the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía, and a panel with Flavia Furtado, Director of the Festival Amazonas de Ópera, and Andrea Caruso, General Director of the Theatro Municipal de São Paulo, moderated by Valentí Oviedo, General Director of the Gran Teatre del Liceu.

 

In her presentation, Sánchez Abeal provided data on the participation of women at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía, noting that in disciplines such as composition and conducting, female representation is nearly non-existent.

 

She highlighted that “the foundation for change is education,” which is why her institution has implemented gender-focused programmes from the ground up.

 

Examples of concrete actions and diverse approaches include the Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Programme—which has presented student-led projects focusing on gender, such as Purple (2019), a proposal giving voice to women who have experienced violence or abuse, and Devolviendo la voz (2021), which sought to recognise women composers in history—the appointment of a female conductor to lead the school’s camerata in 2025, and a women composers’ concert series scheduled for 2026.

 

Although “48% of opera roles are written for women,” Sánchez Abeal explained that this reflects established roles, while areas such as conducting and composing remain largely male-dominated. “We are not including women in the process of shaping the canons and aesthetic trends of our time.”

 

 

The following panel explored equity from various perspectives. Flavia Furtado noted that over 50% of leadership roles in OLA member theatres are held by women, yet inequalities remain, especially in terms of pay. She called for joint reflection and action: “We will pass, but institutions will remain. How will future generations inherit a more equal structure in every sense?”

 

Andrea Caruso presented findings on gender gaps based on the Equality & Diversity in Global Repertoire survey conducted by Donne – Women in Music, which analysed the repertoire performed by 111 orchestras across 30 countries during the 2023–2024 seasons.

 

One key finding revealed that only 7.5% of works were composed by women, a slight decrease from 7.7% the previous year. Of this, 5.8% were composed by white women, while works by women from the global majority accounted for only 1.6%.

 

 

This third edition of the OLA Women’s Forum stood out for its increasingly solid structure and reaffirmed the importance of making gender gaps visible through data and impact reports, highlighting the contributions of women at artistic and professional levels, and promoting spaces for inclusive dialogue across all genders.

 

The forum also took steps toward a future agenda. In 2025, it is running a mentorship programme for women working in OLA theatres, festivals and companies in collaboration with Mujeres Empresarias. The next edition of the forum will take place in September 2025 during a new edition of Abram Alas, at the Theatro Municipal de São Paulo.

 

Audiences and Content: New Strategies for Engagement

 

Artistic programming and audience engagement were among the key themes of the 18th OLA Annual Conference. One of the guest speakers was Hein Mulders, Artistic Director of Oper Köln (Germany), who delivered a keynote titled New Artistic Contents. This was followed by a panel featuring Guy Coolen, Artistic Director of O.Festival (Netherlands), Eric Herrero, Artistic Director of the Theatro Municipal do Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), and Javier Ibacache, co-founder of the Red Latinoamericana de Profesionales para el Desarrollo de Públicos (REDLAP).

 

 

Mulders explored the post-pandemic loss of audiences and the need to rethink scale and formats: “We have to start doing smaller productions, implementing new ideas with the resources we have.” He noted, “Competing with the sofa and Netflix isn’t easy, but we know that those who come to the opera do so to experience something live.”

 

From the O.Festival in Rotterdam, Guy Coolen explained how a festival with no fixed venue and rotating stages attracted new audiences through community inclusion: “We wanted to do something for the different communities living in Rotterdam… now it’s those very communities who give us ideas.”

 

Known for exploring new forms of staging opera, music, and theatre, the O.Festival’s programming includes new operas and interdisciplinary and intercultural performances, such as the 2019 production of Orfeo & Majnun, which intertwines the ancient Greek myth with various cultures and languages.

 

 

Eric Herrero shared the post-pandemic experience of the Theatro Municipal de Rio de Janeiro, which opted for traditional titles to reconnect with older audiences while opening new formats such as Municipal at Noon and boosting its digital presence. He emphasised, “A full theatre means sustaining the sector, creating jobs, and developing the country’s creative economy.”

 

When asked how to balance emotional engagement with the growing political, social, and environmental expectations of younger audiences, panellists agreed that art must remain a space for critical reflection. Herrero remarked, “Art can spark discussion and debate in society,” and that those in leadership roles must “create opportunities for audiences to reflect.”

 

Engagement with Public Policy

 

The panel on public policy and programming—also explored at the previous 17th OLA Annual Conference in Santiago de Chile—brought together Jorge Volpi, Artistic Director of the Centro de Cultura Contemporánea Condeduque (Spain); Félix Palomero, Technical Director of the Spanish National Orchestra and Choirs; Jesús Iglesias Noriega, Artistic Director of the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía (Spain); and Paulina Ricciardi, Executive Director of OLA.

 

The session addressed the structural fragility of cultural policy in Latin America, where “public policies end when governments do,” as Volpi put it. He emphasised the importance of evaluating the impact of cultural strategies in areas like inclusion and training, and noted that “cultural management is treated the same as any other form of administration, which reflects a total lack of control.”

 

 

Palomero advocated for programming grounded in clear objectives and principles and called for greater social representation on governing bodies. He asserted, “Opera must respond quickly to social change,” and encouraged a “militancy in defence of our own.”

 

From the Palau de les Arts, Jesús Iglesias Noriega stressed the need for the public to regain a sense of ownership of cultural spaces: “Even if not everyone likes opera, the challenge is to ensure taxpayers feel the funding is worthwhile.”

 

 

The Theatre Green Book: Towards a Sustainable Model

 

Sustainability in theatres and arts organisations has been a recurring theme in OLA’s recent annual conferences. In 2024, at the 17th edition in Santiago de Chile, key guidelines were established for sustainable development, addressing the creation of new networks and partnerships to strengthen cultural management, institutional resilience, and innovation within the creative industries.

 

 

At the 18th Conference, the focus shifted specifically to environmental sustainability with a presentation of The Theatre Green Book by Raquel Castells, head of internationalisation and sustainability champion for the initiative. Her keynote, The Theatre Green Book– A New Way of Operating in the Performing Arts, introduced the guide as a tool for advancing sustainable practices in the performing arts.

 

“Reaching the basic level only requires time, not funding,” she explained, urging institutions to prioritise action and share experiences. Since its publication in 2021, The Theatre Green Book has brought together theatre, opera and dance networks from around the world in a collective effort, with case studies already emerging—such as the Teatro Arriaga in Bilbao, Spain.

 

 

Following the presentation, the panel A Green and Sustainable Perspective featured Xavier Sagrera, Technical Director of the Gran Teatre del Liceu; Roberto Bernad, Head of European Funds at the Fundación Santander; and Ramiro Osorio, General Director of the Teatro Mayor Julio Mario Santo Domingo (Colombia), who presented his institution’s progress on the issue.

 

From Fundación Santander, Roberto Bernad explained that in 2020, the organisation carried out a study on the environmental impact of cultural institutions in Spain. “We analysed what environmental challenges these organisations faced in their regular activities and then offered financial support through strategic investments,” he said.

 

Recognising the growing interest in this subject among OLA member theatres—and the fact that many have already begun work in this area—the 18th Conference saw the founding of the OLA Sustainability Forum, which will continue promoting sustainability initiatives and sharing best practices to support this transition.

 

The Role of Women in Dance

 

Following its launch at the 2024 edition of the OLA Annual Conference in Santiago de Chile, the Foro de Danza held its second edition.

 

Moderated by Carmen Gloria Larenas (Teatro Municipal de Santiago), the session featured choreographers María Pagés, Artistic Director of the Centro Danza Matadero in Madrid (Spain), and Avätara Ayuso, Director of AWA Dance (United Kingdom), who reflected on the structural barriers faced by women in the discipline.

 

 

“Dance is predominantly female, and has always been sustained by women, which might explain why it’s not valued at the same level as other artistic disciplines,” said Pagés.

 

Ayuso emphasised that “the opportunities we receive are always on a small or medium scale,” adding that many female choreographers must create their own opportunities. Both highlighted the urgency of building cultural structures that recognise and support women’s work in dance.

 

Communication and Audiences: Keys to Engagement

 

The final sessions of the 18th OLA Annual Conference were dedicated to cultural communication and engaging with the diverse audiences that make up today’s cultural and media ecosystem.

 

In a conversation between musician Ramón Gener and journalist Jesús Ruiz Mantilla (El País), titled Disseminating the Arts. The Importance of Storytelling, it was noted that “theatre belongs to everyone” and that opera must be communicated naturally, addressing universal themes that remain relevant: “The great operas of the past still speak to the present.”

 

 

In the panel Today’s Communities and the Audience, moderated by Augusto Techera, Director of Artistic Production at the Teatro de la Maestranza, Carmen Gloria Larenas, General Director of the Teatro Municipal de Santiago, reflected on the “over-formalisation” of operatic communication. “We need to escape the bubble of high culture,” she said, highlighting the expansion of audiences through digital tools like social media—particularly Instagram and TikTok—and newsletters.

 

Curro Ramos, Director of Marketing, Publicity, Quality and Sales at the Teatro Real (Spain), explained that their strategy is based on precisely identifying target audiences and determining how best to reach and impact them. He highlighted the use of platforms such as YouTube and Instagram and stressed the importance of deeply understanding what is being communicated: “I study all the scores to fully immerse myself in the work,” he said.

 

Ignacio Vleming emphasised that theatre communication should not focus solely on filling seats, but on fulfilling a social role: “It’s about keeping the story alive, making it part of people’s lives, their cities, and their imaginations.” One of the main challenges, he said, is fostering loyalty among diverse audiences by using multiple channels—from traditional media to influencers—as each reaches different sectors.