Experience opera at its most essential - colourful stories, compelling performances, and captivating music.
IN her hands
FEATURED
IN HER HANDS
opera premiere - Nov 6, 7, 8, 2026
Essential Opera and Nova Scotia composer/librettist Fiona M. Ryan bring you a spellbinding performance inspired by Macbeth. We reimagine the classic tragedy in the voices of Lady Macbeth, the Weird Sisters, and their goddess Hecate. In Her Hands: The Tragedy of Lady Macbethis an atmospheric, eerie music theatre piece that weaves ancient musical traditions together with supernatural vocal colours. It tells the story of the women and queer-coded characters who are often relegated to the background, and explores themes of gender, power, and inclusion/exclusion.
“What stories would my followers tell
If the chroniclers had sought them out to record their words?”
Featuring a team of artists from New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, NYC, Montreal, and Toronto, we aim to provide a welcoming, accessible environment for the artists and audience, accommodating varying accessibility needs at each performance. November 6 at 7:30pm: live-stream and masks required, November 7 at 7:30pm: ASL interpretation,November 8 at 2:30pm: relaxed performance
SOME OF MY STORIES
DEBUT ALBUM
Essential Opera presents Some of My Stories: The Operas of Monica Pearce, a collection of five one-act chamber operas created over more than a decade of close artistic collaboration with the Canadian composer and librettist.
Go here to listen to the album!
These works bring individual lives and voices to the operatic stage. Each opera captures a moment of reflection or change: the life’s work of Maritime folklorist Helen Creighton in Aunt Helen; a bride suspended between expectation and choice in Cake; the quiet turning of a life in April; the social tensions and wit of Etiquette; and the warmth and uncertainty of a young queer couple’s journey in December.
Performed by EO’s co-artistic directors Maureen Batt and Erin Bardua, with guest artists including Danielle Buonaiuto (soprano), Lucy Hayes Davis (mezzo-soprano), Krisztina Szabó (mezzo-soprano), Patrick Simms (tenor), and Jon-Paul Décosse (bass-baritone), this recording reflects a long-standing creative partnership and the company’s belief that opera is a living art form shaped through new creation.
Digital booklet with libretti, synopses, and credits here.
Album launch and 15th anniversary party in Halifax on May 29.
Album LAUNCH Party
COME PARTY - May 29
Our debut album is finally out and we want to celebrate with you! We're also celebrating our 15th anniversary as a company.
Come hang out and eat free food from 7-10 at The Carleton in Halifax, NS.
Between 8-9 we’ll show a few excerpts of our films and play a few excerpts from our most recently recorded works.
RSVP so we can order enough canapés, hors-d’oeuvres, and bits of things on crackers.
Children 4-18 are welcome until 10pm accompanied by their parent/guardian. IDs will be checked and wristbands provided.
FREE but RSVP here.