Breaking Barriers: Empowering Female Conductors in the World of Opera

A recent study reveals a stark gender imbalance in leading American opera companies, with men dominating conducting, directing, and designing roles. Between 2005 and 2021, men accounted for 95% of conducting credits and 85% of directing credits. The study also found that the gender profile of directors has a snowball effect on the gender breakdown of creative teams. However, the Washington National Opera stood out as an outlier, with more than half of its directors and over a third of its conductors being women. The study suggests that by hiring more women directors, companies are likely to see an increase in women designers across productions.