For Immediate Release
ANNPOLIS OPERA HIRES FIRST GENERAL MANAGER
The Annapolis Opera Company is “taking a big step forward,” said President Leah Solat in announcing the selection of Jennifer Fletcher as its first General Manager. With more than ten years experience in managing and marketing opera and other arts entertainment, she is expected to bring the 38-year-old company to a new level of excellence.
Although she has also worked with large groups, including the Boston Symphony and the Fort Worth Opera, Fletcher believes her experience with smaller companies will make her especially effective in devising strategies to move the Annapolis Opera Company forward. “I think it is probably fair to say I have become an expert on how to make something appear out of thin air,” says the former president of Exclusive Events & Entertainment, whose clients also included opera companies in both Massachusetts and North Carolina.
In meeting the kinds of challenges opera companies face today—the difficulty of building and maintaining audiences and engaging the younger generation—Fletcher points to the need for making creative use of new technologies and the importance of forging strong community ties. To raise local awareness, she says, “I can make it my crusade to have everyone talking about the Annapolis Opera and the exciting events and productions that lie ahead,” including the season’s major production The Marriage of Figaro.
Opera has long been at the center of Fletcher’s life. She majored in vocal performance at San Diego State University, adding an emphasis in stage directing during her graduate training at Boston’s New England Conservatory. She is also something of a pioneer, being one of only 33 women general managers out of the 135 Professional Company Members of Opera America.
Contact: Jennifer Fletcher, General Manager, 410-267-8135
For more information, please visit www.annapolisopera.org, or call 410.267.8135.
