Eastman Opera Theatre Announces 2026-2027 Season
Presenting works by Bernstein, Humperdinck, and Jason Robert Brown
Eastman Opera Theatre’s (EOT) 2026–27 season explores the moments that transform us. Across three productions—each set in a different time and place—one question consistently emerges: What do we do when life changes course? From Bernstein’s whirlwind satire Candide and Jason Robert Brown’s powerful interpretation of humanity in Songs for a New World to Humperdinck’s beloved fairy tale opera Hänsel und Gretel, “each production explores the choices that shape us and the resilience that carries us forward,” shares EOT’s Director of Production Pat Diamond.
Tickets to upcoming performances are available for purchase through Eastman’s Box Office online, in person at 433 East Main Street (open Monday through Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.), or by calling 585-274-3000.
Candide (1974 Chelsea Version)
November 5-7 at 7:30 p.m. | November 8 at 2:30 p.m.
Kilbourn Hall
Music by Leonard Bernstein
Book adapted from Voltaire by Hugh Wheeler
Lyrics by Richard Wilbur
Additional Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim & John Latouche
Broadway Revival Version by Harold Prince
Timothy Long, conductor
Pat Diamond, director
Candide is a fast-paced, witty operetta featuring music by Leonard Bernstein, a book by Hugh Wheeler, and contributed lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. It follows the improbable and unfortunate adventures of Candide and his beloved Cunegonde, blending sophisticated music with absurd, comedic storytelling. Sung in English with supertitles, this one-act opera features chamber orchestration and runs for 105 minutes.
Songs for a New World (1995)
December 10-12 at 7:30 p.m. | December 13 at 2:30 p.m.
Sloan Performing Arts Center, University of Rochester
Music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown
Wilson Southerland, conductor
Octavio Cardenas, director
Tony Award-winner Jason Robert Brown—who studied at Eastman in the late 1980s—penned this powerful collection of songs that examine life, love, and the choices we make as humans. Songs for a New World transports audiences from the deck of a 1492 Spanish sailing ship to a ledge 57 stories above Fifth Avenue—and everywhere in between. A small but powerhouse cast drives this exquisitely crafted score; sung in English with a chamber ensemble.
Hänsel und Gretel (1893)
April 8-10 at 7:30 p.m. | April 11 at 2:30 p.m.
Kodak Hall at Eastman Theatre
Music by Englebert Humperdinck
Libretto by Adelheid Wette
Timothy Long, conductor
Pat Diamond, director
Closing the season in Eastman’s stunning Kodak Hall is Hänsel und Gretel, an opera by Engelbert Humperdinck with a libretto by his sister Adelheid Wette. Blending German folk songs with a sweeping orchestral score and inspired by the well-known Brothers Grimm fairy tale, it premiered in 1893 under the direction of Richard Strauss.
The story follows siblings Hansel and Gretel who venture into the forest and lose their way, discovering a witch’s gingerbread house and putting themselves in grave danger. Ultimately the children outsmart the witch, rescue her other victims, and joyfully reunite with their parents. This performance, sung in German with English supertitles, will be performed over three acts with a full orchestra.
To learn more about Eastman Opera Theatre, please visit our website.
Media Only: Lauren Sageer, Associate Director of Public Relations and Digital Content,
(585) 451-8492, lsageer@esm.rochester.edu
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About Eastman Opera Theatre:
Eastman Opera Theatre offers a comprehensive program of training and performance opportunities for the modern singer-actor. Each year, productions feature a wide range of musical styles, unusual lyric forms, and both traditional and contemporary repertoire that prepare the motivated student for the professional lyric theater world of tomorrow.
Most productions have two complete principal casts (given an equal number of performances), are fully designed, performed in the original language, and depending on the venue, use full orchestral accompaniment. Studio productions, scenes programs, and outreach events are also offered to further enhance the variety of performance opportunities. Eastman Opera Theatre utilizes both undergraduate and graduate students in all roles for all productions.
Recent and past productions include Strauss’ Die Fledermaus; Prestini and Vavrek’s Silent Light; Golijov’s Ainadamar; Catán’s Florencia en el Amazonas; Davis’ Lear on the 2nd Floor; Sondheim’s Into the Woods; Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea; Glass’ Hydrogen Jukebox and Les Enfants Terribles; Guettel’s The Light in the Piazza; Gordon’s The Tibetan Book of the Dead; Mozart’s Don Giovanni; and Puts’ Elizabeth Cree. EOT is committed to working with living composers and librettists. Recent production collaborators have included Anthony Davis, Adam Guettel, Jake Heggie, Paola Prestini, Gene Scheer, Ricky Ian Gordon, Kevin Puts, Steve Bramson, and Mark Campbell.
About Eastman School of Music:
The Eastman School of Music was founded in 1921 by industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman (1854-1932), founder of Eastman Kodak Company. It was the first professional school of the University of Rochester. Mr. Eastman’s dream was that his school would provide a broad education in the liberal arts as well as superb musical training.
More than 900 students are enrolled in the Collegiate Division of the Eastman School of Music—about 500 undergraduates and 400 graduate students. They come from almost every state, and approximately 23 percent are from other countries. They are taught by a faculty comprising more than 170 highly regarded performers, composers, conductors, scholars, and educators. They are Pulitzer Prize winners, Grammy and EMMY Award winners, Guggenheim Fellows, ASCAP Award recipients, published authors, recording artists, and acclaimed musicians who have performed in the world’s greatest concert halls. Each year, Eastman’s students, faculty members, and guest artists present more than 1,000 concerts to the Rochester community and beyond. Additionally, over 1,700 community members, from young children through senior citizens, are enrolled in the Eastman Community Music School.
About the University of Rochester:
The University of Rochester is one of the nation’s leading private research universities, one of only 62-member institutions in the Association of American Universities. Located in Rochester, N.Y., the University gives undergraduates exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary study and close collaboration with faculty through its unique cluster-based curriculum. Its College, School of Arts and Sciences, and Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences are complemented by the Eastman School of Music, Simon School of Business, Warner School of Education, Laboratory for Laser Energetics, School of Medicine and Dentistry, School of Nursing, Eastman Institute for Oral Health, and the Memorial Art Gallery.