Jo Davies steps down as Artistic Director

Jo Davies has stepped down from her position as Artistic Director of Opera Australia.

This mutually agreed decision follows differences of opinion about how Opera Australia should successfully balance artistic innovation, audience development and commercial imperatives moving forward.

During this period of transition while the company’s future artistic leadership is settled, our highly experienced management and artistic teams will continue to realise OA’s ambitions.

Our strategic direction set by the Board and the Executive team is robust and unchanged: we remain committed to presenting exceptional opera and musical theatre for our diverse audiences.

As she steps down, we thank Jo for her significant contribution to the artistic future of Opera Australia and acknowledge the success of her 2024 season to date.

The Sydney Winter productions including Watershed, Il Trittico and Hamlet were all highly acclaimed. Jo’s engagement of three young directors for the three short operas that comprise Il Trittico was a brilliant idea and demonstrated huge commitment to the next generation of Australian talent. Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves - which Jo championed for Melbourne - was a powerful production that saw a strong cast of local singers and many female creatives shaping the work.

For our 2024 Melbourne season Jo also found a fantastic solution for us to present a large-scale opera in Melbourne while the State Theatre – our Melbourne home – is being revitalised. The resulting Tosca at Margaret Court Arena, while no mean feat to stage on a tennis court, was a milestone achievement for OA, and very well received including by our younger audiences who are members of our Under 35s program.

Our 2025 season, which we will announce on Tuesday 17 September, is an exciting one and demonstrates Jo’s unwavering commitment to ensuring the relevance of our artform for today’s audiences.

Thank you for your continuing support of Opera Australia and we hope to see you at a performance very soon.

Rod Sims, Chair and Fiona Allan, CEO