Against the Grain Theatre (AtG) has announced a new partnership with Opera InReach (OIR), a national collective, that will develop educational materials revolving around AtG productions. The one-year agreement extends through the 2021-2022 season.
“Entering into a year of partnership with Against the Grain Theatre will enable [Opera InReach] to understand the impact we wish to have in the opera sector from a new and exciting perspective. I’m thrilled that an organization as community-centric as AtG is willing to take us on to deepen its societal impact,” says Andrew Adridge, co-founder of Opera InReach in a media release.
Common values
The partnership was developed in recognition of the similarity in values shared by the two organizations, emphasizing equity, inclusion, access, and social justice issues, along with the wish to increase collaboration and share knowledge throughout the opera industry.
- The partnership will provide mentorship and skills development for OIR.
- It allows AtG to enlarge their ability to engage with communities across the country.
Robin Whiffen, Executive Director of Against the Grain Theatre, commented in a release. “We are thrilled to be working with the team at Opera InReach over the course of AtG’s 2021-2022 season. Their energy and passion are well aligned with our values at AtG and we can’t wait to deepen this relationship to bring opera and educational programming to young people on Turtle Island.”
Previous work between the organizations has already foreshadowed this kind of cooperation.
- In a July blog post, the two companies collaborated on a statement about the representation of women in opera.
- The post referenced AtG’s production of Sāvitri, which works against the usual stereotypes.
“It is so exciting to see this partnership coming to fruition! We are looking forward to beginning our work with Against the Grain Theatre by offering students across Canada opportunities to learn and engage with opera in new and meaningful ways. We believe that their ability to engage with existing opera-goers and new audiences will give us lots of great material to create entryways into opera for youth across Canada,” says Daevyd Pepper, co-founder of Opera InReach.
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