Leon Major
Encyclopedia
Leon Major is a Canadian
opera
and theatre
director. He is the Artistic Director of The Maryland Opera Studio for the University of Maryland, College Park
. From 1998 - 2003 he was Artistic Director of Boston Lyric Opera
and from 2003–2007 he was artistic consultant for Opera Cleveland.
He has directed opera and theatre throughout the Americas and Europe for companies that include: New York City Opera
, Washington Opera, Glimmerglass Opera
, San Diego Opera
, Vancouver Opera
, Teatro Municipale (Rio de Janeiro), The Opera Company of Philadelphia
, Florentine Opera
, Austin Lyric Opera
, Wolf Trap Opera Company
, the Canadian Opera Company
and The Opera Festival of New Jersey.
Among the productions he has directed are: Macbeth, Falstaff, Intermezzo, Volpone, Don Pasquale, Don Carlos, Resurrection, Aida, Don Giovanni, Roméo et Juliette, La traviata, L'elisir d'amore, Carmen (on Boston Common
) Eugene Onegin, The Aspern Papers, Cosi fan tutte, Il barbiere di Siviglia, and Peter Grimes. Of his New York City Opera
production, the New York Times said: "Falstaff [was] directed with vitality and imagination by Leon Major." His 1981 Stratford Shakespeare Festival production of H.M.S. Pinafore was later presented for broadcast on television.
Aside from his work as an independent director, Major has given master classes in Mexico City, The Shanghai Conservatory, Tel Aviv (Israeli Vocal Arts institute) and Toronto’s Royal Conservatory of Music. He was the Founding and first Artistic Director of the Neptune Theatre
in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and served for ten years as Artistic and General Director of Toronto Arts Productions which was the founding company at the St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts
in Toronto. Leon is a graduate of the University of Toronto
, has an honorary doctorate from Dalhousie University
and is a Member of the Order of Canada
.
A new opera, Shadowboxer
, based on the life of Joe Louis
and conceived and directed by Major, premiered on 17 April 2010 at the University of Maryland
's Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
and theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
director. He is the Artistic Director of The Maryland Opera Studio for the University of Maryland, College Park
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
. From 1998 - 2003 he was Artistic Director of Boston Lyric Opera
Boston Lyric Opera
Boston Lyric Opera is an American opera company based in Boston, Massachusetts, founded in 1976.Each season, BLO produces three mainstage productions at the Citi Performing Arts Center Shubert Theatre in Boston and a fully staged, one-hour English language version of a popular opera for school...
and from 2003–2007 he was artistic consultant for Opera Cleveland.
He has directed opera and theatre throughout the Americas and Europe for companies that include: New York City Opera
New York City Opera
The New York City Opera is an American opera company located in New York City.The company, called "the people's opera" by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, was founded in 1943 with the aim of making opera financially accessible to a wide audience, producing an innovative choice of repertory, and...
, Washington Opera, Glimmerglass Opera
Glimmerglass Opera
Glimmerglass Festival is an opera company which was founded in 1975 by Peter Macris and presents an annual season of operas at the Alice Busch Opera Theater on Otsego Lake eight miles north of Cooperstown, New York, United States.The summer-only season usually consists of four operas performed in...
, San Diego Opera
San Diego Opera
The San Diego Opera Association is a professional opera company located in the city of San Diego, California and is a member of OPERA America. It was founded in 1950 to present productions by San Francisco Opera in the San Diego area...
, Vancouver Opera
Vancouver Opera
Vancouver Opera is the second largest performing arts organization in British Columbia and the largest opera company in western Canada.It performs in the Queen Elizabeth Theatre accompanied currently by the Vancouver Opera Orchestra, one of two specialized opera orchestras in Canada...
, Teatro Municipale (Rio de Janeiro), The Opera Company of Philadelphia
Opera Company of Philadelphia
The Opera Company of Philadelphia is an American opera company in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is the city's only company producing grand opera. The organization produces four fully staged opera productions annually, encompassing works from the seventeenth through the 21st century...
, Florentine Opera
Florentine Opera
The Florentine Opera Company is Wisconsin's oldest fully professional performing arts organization and the sixth-oldest opera company in the United States. The company presents on three staged productions per season largely from the standard operatic repertoire...
, Austin Lyric Opera
Austin Lyric Opera
Austin Lyric Opera, founded in 1986, is an internationally known opera company based in Austin, Texas.It also operates the Armstrong Community Music School....
, Wolf Trap Opera Company
Wolf Trap Opera Company
The Wolf Trap Opera Company produces a summer opera festival as part of the program of the Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts in Vienna, Virginia....
, the Canadian Opera Company
Canadian Opera Company
The Canadian Opera Company is an opera company in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the largest opera company in Canada and the third largest producer of opera in North America. The COC performs in its own opera house, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts.-History:For 40 years until...
and The Opera Festival of New Jersey.
Among the productions he has directed are: Macbeth, Falstaff, Intermezzo, Volpone, Don Pasquale, Don Carlos, Resurrection, Aida, Don Giovanni, Roméo et Juliette, La traviata, L'elisir d'amore, Carmen (on Boston Common
Boston Common
Boston Common is a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts. It is sometimes erroneously referred to as the "Boston Commons". Dating from 1634, it is the oldest city park in the United States. The Boston Common consists of of land bounded by Tremont Street, Park Street, Beacon Street,...
) Eugene Onegin, The Aspern Papers, Cosi fan tutte, Il barbiere di Siviglia, and Peter Grimes. Of his New York City Opera
New York City Opera
The New York City Opera is an American opera company located in New York City.The company, called "the people's opera" by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, was founded in 1943 with the aim of making opera financially accessible to a wide audience, producing an innovative choice of repertory, and...
production, the New York Times said: "Falstaff [was] directed with vitality and imagination by Leon Major." His 1981 Stratford Shakespeare Festival production of H.M.S. Pinafore was later presented for broadcast on television.
Aside from his work as an independent director, Major has given master classes in Mexico City, The Shanghai Conservatory, Tel Aviv (Israeli Vocal Arts institute) and Toronto’s Royal Conservatory of Music. He was the Founding and first Artistic Director of the Neptune Theatre
Neptune Theatre (Halifax)
The Neptune Theatre is the largest professional theatre company in Atlantic Canada with a capacity of 497 and is located in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It performs a mixture of new and classical plays....
in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and served for ten years as Artistic and General Director of Toronto Arts Productions which was the founding company at the St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts
St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts
The St Lawrence Centre for the Arts is a performing arts theatre complex located in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located on Front Street one block east of Yonge Street, it was Toronto's official centennial project, commemorating the 1967 Canadian Centennial...
in Toronto. Leon is a graduate of the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
, has an honorary doctorate from Dalhousie University
Dalhousie University
Dalhousie University is a public research university located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The university comprises eleven faculties including Schulich School of Law and Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine. It also includes the faculties of architecture, planning and engineering located at...
and is a Member of the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
.
A new opera, Shadowboxer
Shadowboxer (opera)
Shadowboxer, is an opera in two acts composed by Frank Proto to a libretto by John Chenault based on the life of Joe Louis, the legendary American boxer...
, based on the life of Joe Louis
Joe Louis
Joseph Louis Barrow , better known as Joe Louis, was the world heavyweight boxing champion from 1937 to 1949. He is considered to be one of the greatest heavyweights of all time...
and conceived and directed by Major, premiered on 17 April 2010 at the University of Maryland
University of Maryland School of Music
The University of Maryland School of Music is a music school located in College Park, Maryland outside of Washington, D.C. The School of Music is the largest performing arts unit at the University of Maryland, College Park.The UM School of Music is a comprehensive music school, with undergraduate...
's Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center.
External links
- official website: www.leonmajor.com
- Leon Major, faculty page, University of Maryland School of Music