David Bennett (born c. 1963) is the general director of the

San Diego Opera The San Diego Opera Association (SDO) is a professional opera company located in the city of San Diego, California. It incorporated in 1965, presenting operas under the name of the San Diego Opera.Gotham Chamber Opera Gotham Chamber Opera was a professional opera company located in New York City. The company was founded in 2000 under the name of the Henry Street Chamber Opera by Artistic Director Neal Goren and specialized in producing rarely performed chamber ...

. He began his opera career as a singer, performing as a

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

for multiple companies.

Early life and education

Bennett was born in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

. His mother was a pianist and piano teacher, and his brother is a jazz trumpeter. He began singing and acting in high school and began to focus on opera in college. He earned a degree in music from

Texas Christian University Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private research university in Fort Worth, Texas. It was established in 1873 by brothers Addison and Randolph Clark as the Add-Ran Male & Female College. It is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples ...

. He has Master of Business Administration and Master of Arts Administration degrees from

Southern Methodist University , mottoeng = "The truth will make you free" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = SACS , academic_affiliations = , religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church , president = R. Gerald Turner , prov ...

Career

A baritone, he performed as an opera singer for more than a decade, with appearances at the

Dallas Opera The Dallas Opera is an American opera company located in Dallas, Texas. The company performs at the Margot and Bill Winspear Opera House, one venue of the AT&T Performing Arts Center. History The company was founded in 1957 as the Dallas Civic ...

, the

Dallas Symphony The Dallas Symphony Orchestra (DSO) is an American orchestra based in Dallas, Texas. Its principal performing venue is the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center in the Arts District of downtown Dallas. History The orchestra traces its origins to a ...

, Skylight Opera Theater, and

Florentine Opera The Florentine Opera Company is one of Wisconsin's oldest professional performing arts centers and the sixth-oldest opera company in the United States. The company presents three to five staged productions per season largely from the standard ope ...

of Milwaukee, among others. He then moved into management. He served as a consultant to Arts Resources International, then became managing director of Dance New Amsterdam in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. In 2006 he went to work for the

Gotham Chamber Opera Gotham Chamber Opera was a professional opera company located in New York City. The company was founded in 2000 under the name of the Henry Street Chamber Opera by Artistic Director Neal Goren and specialized in producing rarely performed chamber ...

as managing director and was named executive director in 2010. He was regarded as an innovator, broadening the company's repertoire and presenting productions in unorthodox venues. During his tenure the company's operating budget tripled and the number of fully staged productions grew from one to four per season. However, after his departure the Chamber Opera was discovered to be deeply in debt, and it went out of business in 2015. He has also served as vice chair of

Opera America __NOTOC__ Opera America, styled OPERA America, is a New York-based service organization promoting the creation, presentation, and enjoyment of opera in the United States. Almost all professional opera companies and some semi-professional companies i ...

. Marc Scorca, president and CEO of Opera America, described him as "one of the most creative, energetic and effective opera leaders in the country". In March 2015 the San Diego Opera announced his hiring as general director, replacing Ian Campbell, who left in May 2014 after unsuccessfully proposing a controversial shutdown of the opera company.Ng, David
"San Diego Opera officially parts ways with director Ian Campbell"
''Los Angeles Times'', May 15, 2014 Bennett is the fourth general director in the company's 50-year history. Assuming San Diego Opera's leadership in 2015 after its near-death experience, he was "tasked with downsizing and reimagining the company for 21st century audiences." Under his supervision the company's budget was cut from $18 million in 2014 to $10 million in 2018. There are three traditional opera productions each year, along with a "Detour series" of smaller, more innovative works and increased community outreach programs. In 2018 the board of directors renewed his three-year contract for another three years, with the board chairman commenting, "David is clearly the leader San Diego Opera needs at this point in time."

References

External links

General Director / David Bennett
San Diego Opera {{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, David Living people 1960s births American opera directors Singers from Missouri Musicians from San Diego Texas Christian University alumni Southern Methodist University alumni American baritones Musicians from Kansas City, Missouri