Keen for Opera Queensland to return to the stage and perform in front of a large audience, after seeing all its major 2020 productions cancelled due to COVID-19, Artistic Director and CEO Patrick Nolan decided to launch the company’s 2021 season at a concert called Opera Queensland Under the Stars presented on Brisbane’s Riverstage on 28 November.

Conducted by Dane Lam, the concert featured 10 of Queensland’s leading singers, including Eva Kong, José Carbo and Jason Barry-Smith, along with the 60-strong Opera Queensland Chorus, singing famous arias from popular operas.

“We had the capacity to put on this concert and we thought why not do a big outdoor event and make that a celebration both in anticipation of our 40th birthday next year, and also the launch of our season,” Nolan tells Limelight.

“And I guess it’s as much about saying thank you to our audiences in Brisbane who have been incredibly supportive over this period, and creating an opportunity for us to come together and sing and celebrate...