New Opera Singapore (NOS) is a non-profit opera company founded in 2011 by South Korean soprano, Jeong Ae Ree.
NOS is known for its Opera Comique series of humorous modern operas and for its outreach program, "Who’s Afraid of Opera?", in schools and community buildings around Singapore. NOS has also held opera concerts in schools such as the Anglo-Chinese Junior School and the National University of Singapore. NOS uses talents from multiple countries, including Singapore, Malaysia and Korea.
In 2011, New Opera Singapore had its inaugural performance with Opera Comique: In the Office at the Singapore Arts House Chamber.
In 2012, New Opera Singapore began a series of productions that included the second Opera Comique production, ‘In the Classroom’; Gaetano Donizetti’s bel canto opera L'elisir d'amore, and Franz Schubert’s Die Schöne Müllerin.
Its performance of L'elisir d'amore was noted as a “commendable first show” despite technical limitations.
In 2013, New Opera Singapore began its season with its third instalment of its Opera Comique series with ‘At the Airport’. The performance was criticised for its heavy use of tenors and sopranos.
Outreach
New Opera Singapore has an outreach programme titled ‘Who’s Afraid of Opera?’. This programme is targeted specifically at schools. In these sessions, students are exposed to the context of famous arias and are taught to understand the interplay between music, words and acting as an expression of the intent of the character and the composer.