Quebec

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In 1983, the history of lyric arts in Quebec City reached a turning point. Thanks to the hard work and dedication of pioneers at Théâtre lyrique de Nouvelle-France, Opéra de Québec and later Société lyrique d’Aubigny who helped bring opera to Quebec City, the Opéra de Québec Foundation was created on January 7, 1983 and was soon followed by the Opéra de Québec Corporation on November 16 the same year. The corporation’s mission was to produce professional opera performances in Quebec City.



Opéra de Québec set itself the goal of presenting two well-known operas per season, showcasing local talent as much as possible. The new company’s first production, in May 1985, was Puccini’s Madama Butterfly. It was a huge success, largely thanks to the magnificent performance of Evelyne Brunner in the title role.



Messages of support for the new initiative came pouring in from well wishers all over the world—Luciano Pavarotti, Jessye Norman, Placido Domingo, Jon Vickers, Wilhelmenia Fernandez, Pierrette Alarie, and Léopold Simoneau. For the debut performance, Opéra de Québec unveiled an avant-garde process that involved using surtitles in French. A first not only in Québec but in all francophone countries worldwide.

Since those early days under the direction of tenor and conductor Guy Bélanger, Opéra de Québec has made a concerted effort to foster and promote Quebec talent and has given many local singers their first true opportunity to stand out as professionals. Singers such as Sonia Racine, Lyne Fortin, Hélène Fortin, Agathe Martel, Odette Beaupré, Monique Pagé, Louis Langelier, Jean-François Lapointe, and Claude Robin-Pelletier, to name but a few. These upcoming stars were also able to benefit from the experience of veteran performers from Quebec and all over the world, such as Colette Boky, Joseph Rouleau, Robert Savoie, Claude Corbeil, Gaétan Laperrière, Bernard Turgeon, Yves Cantin, Pierre Charbonneau, Theodore Baerg, Brett Polegato, Jean Stilwell, Peter Strummer, Maria d’Aragnès, John Cheek, Stephen Powell, Leslie Richards, Jianyi Zhang, Audrey Stottler, John Fanning, Richard Fredricks, Kevin Glavin, Joanne Kolomyjec, Brenda Harris, Russell Braun, and many more.

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