(Santa Fe, NM) - On February 12th, The Santa Fe Opera announced that it had hired The Dallas Opera’s David Lomelí as its new Chief Artistic Officer, consolidating the roles previously held by Artistic Director Alexander Neef (now leading Opéra de Paris) and Director of Artistic Administration Brad Woolbright, who retired in December 2020.
Santa Fe Opera Appoints Chief Artistic Officer
By Mark Tiarks for The New Mexican (13FEB2021)
Lomelí’s years of artistic and artistic administration success, which includes a robust, globally-recognized singing career and the founding and exponential growth of The Dallas Opera’s wildly successful, YouTube-based TDO Network (boasting 28 weekly shows and 90 million views) is complimented by international marketing and computer science engineering degrees from Spain and Mexico, respectively. A seismic new hire, in our opinion. Lomelí, a quadruple threat rarely seen in opera, arrives in Santa Fe at a pivotal and eventful moment in the company’s history.
Santa Fe is a unique house with a unique story. A summer festival that functions more like a full-season, A-level house, we branded Santa Fe as the Davos-Sundance of Opera, based upon where it sits, literally and figuratively, in the global opera universe. For most opera companies and professionals, 2020 was a shared annus horribilis. But, Santa Fe punched well above its weight, pivoting to a hybrid, digital summer apprentices program, as well as the Songs from The Santa Fe Opera series, which celebrated 2020’s five (5), originally scheduled operas from its high desert stage with remote performances and interviews from around the world, notably before Metropolitan' Opera’s Met Stars Live debuted.
In the fall, stunning Opera For All Voices programming arrived. “Is This America,” a film showcasing Chandler Carter and Diana Solomon-Glover’s “This Little Light of Mine,” a one-act opera portraying key events in the life of voting rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer, screened in partnership with CCA Santa Fe just before the November election. In February, OFAV’s Key Change, one of the country’s best podcasts, began its third season exploring the development of new OFAV works while keeping a finger on the pulse of social justice, immigration and the state of our union (more on this breakthrough podcast soon).
With an eye to the coming summer season, General Director Robert K. Meya shared that Santa Fe Opera is heavily invested in a COVID-safe 2021 season, having created a new position - COVID Compliance and Safety Officer - to manage new protocols developed with CHRISTUS St. Vincent, partnering with Production Safe Zone “to conduct testing and help maintain performer and worker social distancing protocols.”
Santa Fe Opera is effectively in the process of creating the world premiere of a proprietary, safety-first opera brand experience - a thrilling business, health, science, performing arts and human interest story like no other, and just in time for Mr. Lomelí’s arrival. We’ve no inside information on Mr. Lomelí’s full Chief Artistic Officer responsibilities or his specific plans, but OI Insights would like to the first to highlight some clear, additional business wins. Full disclosure: we’ve not yet had the opportunity to formally meet Mr. Lomelí and these thoughts are based upon publicly available information.
Optics
I’m hard pressed to think of another US-based, Latinx person at Mr. Lomelí’s level of artistry, artistic leadership and experience in the business of opera (this Mexican-American cheered when he heard the news). Santa Fe Opera is an increasingly diverse place to work, especially when fully staffed during the season, but leadership positions haven’t always been as representative of multicultural New Mexico. Given this, Mr. Lomelí’s arrival is right on time; he will not only build upon his success at The Dallas Opera and abroad, but bring critical diversity insights and best practices with him. Per Opera News:
“His tenure at The Dallas Opera marked the first time in the history of an American opera company that a Latino has held a top position at a Level 1 opera company. Lomelí serves as a Strategic Committee Member with OPERA America’s ALAANA (African, Latinx, Arab, Asian and Native American) Steering Committee and is committed to enhancing opera and the opera industry through increased diversity and equitable practices.”
Mr. Lomelí’s standing in the industry as a Latinx person, coupled with the aforementioned OPERA America service, it would not be a stretch to say that he could be Santa Fe Opera’s de facto Chief Diversity Officer. At the very least, he will be able to provide fellow members of Santa Fe leadership, his Human Resources colleagues (as well as board members and staff) with on point guidance, based upon his experience with these best practices in the opera space, which every American company worth its salt must actively engage, embrace and grow.
Expertise
As detailed in various articles written about Mr. Lomelí’s impending arrival, he brings a diversified portfolio of experience, credentials and business success to the table. But no two companies are the same and Santa Fe Opera presents unique opportunities.
Over the course of his career, Lomelí appears to have taken calculated risks and forged new paths. Based upon his use of TDO social media, he’s effectively become one of its most recognized faces, and his clear understanding of public relations - his use of personal PR as well as a publicist - demonstrates the importance he places on telling a compelling, real-time story not only for himself but for his brand. Applying this to TDO Network’s raison d’être, the initiative was born due to a lack of substantial TDO video archives and a reluctance to begin creating expensive digital opera. Given these realities, Lomelí and his team ideated and executed a programming vision that not only employs talented creatives, many of whom are out of work opera singers, but also creates real-time space and conversation around some of opera and American culture’s hot button topics - equity, inequality and race - during one of our nation’s most hot button times (cue the OFAV Key Change synergies).
Shockingly, there are only a few other regularly-seen ‘face of the brand’ individuals in opera. Some who come to mind are San Francisco Opera’s Matthew Shilvock, Fort Worth Opera’s Afton Battle, Glimmerglass Festival’s Francesca Zambello and a certain gent in New York City. As General Director, Mr. Meya appeared throughout 2020’s digital programming and is regularly identified as Santa Fe Opera’s chief executive. However, given Mr. Lomelí’s regular #FOTB appearances across the TDO Network and his deft use of social media and public relations for himself and his brand, SFO is almost certainly considering how to harness the success of this opera world influencer, recreating and growing the global digital success first born in Dallas .
Even with high-dollar investments in a COVID-safe SFO brand experience this summer, there’s every reason for the company to also invest in its digital capabilities now that the pandemic has forever changed how we consume - and accept - alternatives to live performance. Leveraging Lomelí’s global network, SFO could digitally introduce itself into new homes, regions and spheres of influence (i.e. global business), elevating itself to the worldwide omnimedia prominence and resonance it deserves, while still remaining place-based and fully associated with The City Different. If, of course, Santa Fe Opera wants this, as we stated in our 2019 blog. The results could be on par with TDO Network and Met Opera, making Santa Fe Opera a Top Five, globally-recognized opera brand with the ability to monetize its prominence (today’s Scott Galloway-esque prediction). We’re hoping SFO is audacious enough to consider and make it a reality.
Vision
Continuing in the spirit of the last section and based upon his reported global consulting, Mr. Lomelí undoubtedly sees the world as his operating environment, not just New Mexico, the Southwest or even the United States. Santa Fe Opera has been steadily building its working relationships with Europe since Mr. Meya became General Director, which has been exciting to watch and critical to the growth of SFO’s global footprint. In addition to key European relationships, Mr. Lomelí’s ready access to and standing in the Spanish-speaking opera, business and cultural worlds means that Santa Fe Opera could become The Americas’ most influential opera company. A thought: Monocle Magazine’s annual soft-power issue ranks “how well countries project themselves abroad.” In the same way, with a bilingual digital network, Santa Fe Opera could create indelible velocity of message, projecting its own brand of soft, multi-cultural power around the world, but specifically across North and Latin America, becoming a unifying force for American opera and, more critically, Opera in the Americas. Our recent, frank assessment of this country’s flagship opera company makes this a strategic objective worth considering and most certainly a goal that’s within reach. If I was formally advising the company, this would be the hill I’d jump up and down upon.
Mr. Lomeli from a recent ABC News article, speaking to opera generally and The Dallas Opera Network:
"It's a business that doesn't have a lot of clues on how to do this," Lomeli said. "We debunk myths, and a lot of people who are following us are around the globe…singers or people who are just starting (to watch)."
Mr. Lomeli probably recognizes that the opera world is watching and studying his particular approach to opera innovation (as they should), while he continues to write the book on building a dominant, glocal brand, perhaps even beyond opera-world recognition. As suggested above, the bilingual or multi-lingual expansion and exportation of Santa Fe Opera’s one of a kind ethos, with emphasis on multi-cultural New Mexico, could power connection through bold performance, pop up experiences, brand partnerships and omnimedia, scaling the brand to new and dizzying heights.
A clue: how do national tourism efforts work in the global travel market?
JM for OI Insights