Chamber Opera Theater of New York
| Company type | Opera company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Performing arts |
| Founded | 1980 |
| Founder | Thaddeus Motyka |
| Defunct | 1986 |
| Headquarters | New York City , United States |
Area served | New York City |
Key people | Thaddeus Motyka (founder) |
| Products | Opera performances |
The Chamber Opera Theater of New York was an American opera company situated in New York City that functioned between 1980 and 1986. While its main performances took place at the Marymount Manhattan Theater, it also occasionally staged productions at locations such as the Brooklyn Academy of Music. According to music critic Allan Kozinn in The New York Times, the company "earned a reputation for intimately produced performances, predominantly presenting works seldom performed in larger venues," which helped it cultivate a loyal audience and receive positive critical acclaim.
Established by Thaddeus Motyka, the company’s inaugural performance occurred on March 21, 1980, featuring a double bill of Jacques Ibert's Angélique alongside William Walton's The Bear, under the baton of Ainslee Cox with the Endymion Ensemble. Although the company consistently garnered favorable reviews, financial difficulties remained an ongoing issue, somewhat eased by a 1983 benefit concert that showcased tenor Nicolai Gedda, soprano Elisabeth Söderström, and mezzo-soprano Gwendolyn Jones.
Notable works in its repertoire encompassed Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari's Il segreto di Susanna (1980), Gian Carlo Menotti's The Old Maid and the Thief (1980), Antonio Salieri's Prima la musica e poi le parole (1981), Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's Mozart and Salieri (1982), Francesco Cavalli's L'Ormindo (1982), Benjamin Britten's The Turn of the Screw (1982), Thea Musgrave's Voice of Ariadne (1983), Britten's Curlew River (1984), Ottorino Respighi's La bella dormente nel bosco (1985), and Donizetti's Don Pasquale (1985). The company’s concluding presentation in 1986 was the U.S. premiere of Alexander Dargomyzhsky's The Stone Guest.'