Kentucky Opera recently announced their 2026/2027 season with a powerful blend of four mainstage classics and compelling new works that invite us to see our world through the lens of family, both given and found.
The season opens with The Barber of Seville, which will be performed at the W. L. Lyons Brown Theatre –– one year ahead of Kentucky Opera’s anticipated return to its traditional performing home. “In a season all about the family unit, it’s only natural for Kentucky Opera to return home to the Brown Theatre,” says General Director and CEO Ben Robinson, adding that “the projects for the year ahead are meant to be reflective of the Louisville community, and collaborative with Kentuckiana organizations that bring people together.”
The 2026/27 season will showcase new and expanded partnerships as Kentucky Opera deepens its connections across the Kentuckiana community. Richard Strauss’ landmark work, Salome, will be presented in a semi-staged production in collaboration with the Louisville Orchestra at Whitney Hall. “Kentucky Opera’s return to the Brown Theatre this October is a testament to Ben’s vision and to the way our community is already responding to his energy and ideas,” says Matthew Hamel, President of the Board of Trustees. “We need stories that inspire us and bring us together, and this season — with its vibrant mix of beloved classics and compelling new works — will do exactly that.”
2026/2027 SEASON DETAILS
The Barber of Seville
October 9 and 11, 2026
W. L. Lyons Brown Theatre
Music by Gioachino Rossini
Libretto by Cesare Sterbini
Witty antics and mayhem meet an exercise-fueled romp in Rossini’s madcap comedy. When a disguised count falls for the ward of a local bigwig, only a barber of quality can save the day. Featuring an internationally acclaimed cast headlined by baritone Charles Eaton in the title role, Minghao Liu as Almaviva, Lisa Marie Rogali as Rosina, Brian Kontes as Basilio, and Dennis Jesse as Bartolo.
COTTON
November 20, 21, & 22, 2026
Kentucky Opera Center for Cultural Health
Music by Damien Geter
Poetry by Nikki Giovanni, Marc Bamuthi Joseph, Lauren Alleyne, Charlotte Blake Alston, Trapeta Mayson, Glenis Redmond, Afaa Michael Weaver & Alora Young.
The world-renowned visual artist John E. Dowell felt called in a dream by his grandmother to travel to South Carolina and photograph the fields where she had likely been enslaved. He used the resulting images to create his magnum opus, COTTON: The Soft, Dangerous Beauty of Our Past. Geter’s work is a song cycle based on poetic impressions of Dowell’s photographic collages and features a stunning lineup of commissioned works, including one of the last poems ever written by Nikki Giovanni. Profound, reverent, and deeply uplifting, COTTON is a reminder of our past and a ray of hope for our future. During this event, Kentucky Opera will partner with the University of Louisville School of Music to present a weeklong celebration of song, featuring a dynamic series of concerts and master classes unfolding across the city.
Così fan tutte
March 18, 20, & 21, 2027
Kentucky Opera Center for Cultural Health
Music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte
This sophisticated comedy examines relationships, trust, and fidelity. With soprano Emily Albrink and bass-baritone Michael Scarcelle, and conducted by Christopher Zemliauskas.
Salome
May 7 & 8, 2027
Whitney Hall, The Kentucky Center
Music by Richard Strauss
Libretto by Hedwig Lachmann
Based on the play by Oscar Wilde
Co-production with Louisville Orchestra
Oscar Wilde’s decadent apocryphal tale explores the loss of innocence in one of the most impactful operas ever written. Salome will feature the full title role debut of internationally acclaimed soprano Jessica Faselt. Other cast members include Kentucky-trained baritone Reginald Smith, Jr. in his role debut as Jochanaan and Grammy-nominated tenor Omar Najmi as Narraboth. The production will be conducted by Teddy Abrams, Music Director of the Louisville Orchestra, and directed by Ben Robinson, General Director of Kentucky Opera.
ADDITIONAL EVENTS
In addition to mainstage events, Kentucky Opera will continue to produce the Louisville Juneteenth Jubilee Commission’s Annual Celebration and will offer numerous auxiliary events, including Evenings of Note at Oxmoor Farm (September 26, 2026), SongWeek (November 15 to 22, 2026), and A Holiday Cabaret (December 11 to 13, 2026), as well as its regular scheduled Awakenings and Opera Café series.
The company will also launch the Kentucky Opera Supper Club, a new no-host social series highlighting the extraordinary restaurant scene in Louisville and its ties to the season’s programs.
TICKETS AND INFORMATION
Season ticket packages will go on sale to the public on May 4, 2026.
For more information, visit KYOpera.org or call 502.584.4500.
This article appears in Feb 14-28, 2026.