After years of financial difficulties, the board of Opera Hamilton has announced that it is ceasing operations. Hamilton is a city located on the west end of Lake Ontario. The Opera’s annual gala, Popera, which was scheduled to take place on Saturday evening and continue next week hase been cancelled as has the production of Bizet’s Carmen scheduled for April.
In a press release, Peter Uffelmann, Opera Hamilton board co-chair and treasurer stated that, « we simply do not have the financial resources to continue. We had hoped a large donation from an individual would arrive in time, but regrettably it did not materialize, and in the absence of any other funding, the board had no choice but to cancel the rest of the season and cease operations. »
Opera Hamilton began in 1980 as an outgrowth of ‘Festitalia’ which had imported operatic productions from Italy in the late 1970s.
