Our Vision
Our Mission
The mission of the St. Petersburg Opera Company is to enrich the cultural lives of the residents of and visitors to the Tampa Bay area by presenting fully staged professional opera productions of the highest quality, and to make opera accessible to present and future audiences through community outreach, educational initiatives, and collaboration with other arts organizations.
Our Vision
The artistic experience has always been paramount in Maestro Mark Sforzini’s vision. Since founding the company in 2007, the quality of musicianship has continued to grow and thrive, enhancing the cultural life of Tampa Bay and providing myriad opportunities for professional singers, orchestral players, dancers, directors, choreographers, and designers both locally and abroad.
The St. Petersburg Opera Co. has been recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts for the quality of its Emerging Artist program and its productions and personnel have won numerous industry awards, boasting the honor of being voted “Best Opera Company of the Bay” for three years running. Maestro Sforzini was recently chosen by Musical America as one of thirty international industry professionals as a “Profile in Courage”. These top industry leaders have “taken a risk, spoken out where others were silent – all to the measurable benefit of their arts organizations and the field”.
Maestro Sforzini is devoted to the mission to make opera accessible and enjoyable for all, which can be noted in the measurable impact of lifelong learning and youth education programs. Collaboration with key artistic organizations and free concerts throughout the community allow people of all ages and from all walks of life to experience and learn that they love opera.
The St. Petersburg Opera Co. operates in a fiscally responsible fashion, finishing each of 12 consecutive seasons in the black. In 2012 SPO moved into its current downtown home – Opera Central – rapidly transforming it into one of St. Pete’s most vibrant cultural hubs. Opera Central offers an important home for the artistic community, featuring collaborative event and rehearsal space and the Mirella Cimato Art Gallery.
We are grateful each and every day to be creating world-class musical experiences in Tampa Bay.