The first edition of the Opera Forward Festival (OFF) took place in March 2016, under the motto ‘new voices, new visions’. Every year since then, the festival has showcased innovative operas in a variety of forms and configurations. The essence of OFF is the encounters and exchanges between generations, styles and voices. We actively seek to reach new audiences, partly by offering affordable ticket prices. Every edition, we make steps in becoming even more sustainable. We commission new operas, leading to productions that capture our modern world in sound, words and images. The commissions began 2016 with Kaija Saariaho’s groundbreaking Only The Sound Remains and continued with formidable world premieres such as Animal Farm (Alexander Raskatov, 2023), The Shell Trial (Ellen Reid, 2024) and We Are The Lucky Ones (Philip Venables, 2025). Innovative operas A consistent hallmark of every edition has been the finely balanced mix of national and international creatives. Moreover, maintaining links with the artists and inviting them back makes it possible for the festival to follow their development over time. An example is the Dutch composer and director Michel van der Aa, who has received acclaim both in the Netherlands and abroad for his innovative and emotionally powerful operas. His work Blank Out had its world premiere at the first OFF. Ten years later, we are celebrating OFF’s anniversary with his new opera Theory of Flames. In partnership with November Music, we will also be presenting a new requiem by the composer Meriç Artaç. The director is Silvia Costa, who is making a name for herself on the international opera scene with her stylised and poetic productions. Afro-Caribbean heritage Besides the Main Stage productions, we will also be making extensive use of our second, more intimate venue, Studio Boekman. It will host the Dutch premiere of the ‘one-man opera’ The Knife of Dawn by composer Hannah Kendall. Kendall is gaining recognition in the world of contemporary music. In her works, she deftly interweaves elements from her Afro-Caribbean heritage into contemporary classical music. Gavin-Viano, who has already chalked up various distinctive projects as both a theatre maker and a performer, will be making his operadirecting debut with this work. The Dutch National Opera Studio is an annual fixture at OFF. This year, the young artists will be performing in a new production of the small-scale opera Les enfants terribles by the composer Philip Glass. This is a joint production with Opera Zuid and Nederlandse Reisopera. Ever since the first edition, numerous student projects have been an integral part of the festival, offering an oppor- tunity for highly experimental, fresh and critical interpretations and views on opera as an art form. A notable component of this anniversary edition is the Opera Europa conference. Opera Europa is the professional network of European opera houses and festivals, and its conference promotes exchanges and connections across the international opera scene. In its 2026 programme, OFF not only celebrates its tenth edition but also – above all – looks ahead and embraces the future! Founding partner Production partner Encounters between generations, styles and voices The Opera Forward Festival is celebrating its tenth anniversary. Since it started in 2016, OFF has given contemporary opera makers a stage, thus offering new perspectives on opera and on ourselves. Opera needs to move forward, into the world. This mission remains at the heart of the festival, also during this tenth edition. 45
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