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Contents of this page

  • What is the C-Opera listserv?
  • How do I join C-Opera?
  • Who is on C-Opera?
  • How do I use the C-Opera listserv?
  • How do I search the C-Opera archive?
  • What other options do I have?
  • How do I unsubscribe?

    What is the C-Opera listserv?

    The C-Opera listserv was an e-mail mailing list. From January 1996 to February 2005, it was a public but moderated discussion group for those involved in the creation, production and presentation of contemporary music theatre and opera. The list was founded by Lukas Pairon and Kent Devereaux, and was then moderated by Glenn Erik Haugland and Barry Drogin. The final list moderator was Yoav Gal (New York City, U.S.A.), composer and multi-disciplined artist (visit his website, yoavgal.com). The listserv was archived and operated out of a Unix e-mail server named "Hermes" out of the Computing Services Department of the University of New Brunswick in Canada (thus the "hermes.csd.unb.ca" in the list address) with the help of Education Professor Don Soucy. The list allowed for discussions about all kinds of topics related to the creation of contemporary music theatre and opera, but was especially worthwhile as a bulletin board for announcements of new productions, questions amongst practitioners, and specific requests for information or advice for solving certain problems. The official "objective" was the same as that of the NewOp/NonOp meetings, as summarized by its founders:

    "The objective is to see a more cooperative communication and relationship develop between members who have common artistic objectives in advancing and advocating a contemporary appreciation of the evolving music-theater and opera form in all its aspects."
    Subscribers to the list were specifically asked to post:
  • info about subscriber's (or their company's) background and interests in contemporary opera
  • calls for composers, librettist, designers, directors, singers, musicians, etc., for new productions
  • info about new productions you currently have underway
  • info about new productions for which you are seeking co-producers/presenters
  • info about previously premiered work for which you are seeking second productions
  • reviews of contemporary music theater or opera productions that might be of interest to the list at large

    Some major points to remember about the list were:

  • The list was moderated. Posting was not pre-screened, but the moderator will contact subscribers privately whose postings do not fit into the spirit of the list. This includes preserving an environment for "cooperative communication". If necessary, the moderator will remove violators from the list!
  • The list was "for those involved in the creation, production and presentation" of new work. It was not a fan site, and, in the spirit of advocacy, negative "reviews" of new work should be handled delicately. Fans, critics, musicologists and other academics were allowed to join, but do not dominate the list.
  • The list was sometimes very "quiet," especially during the off-season.
  • There had been debates on what constitute "fit subjects" for the list. There was some interest in historical productions and "non-standard" repertoire, but requests for information are usually taken "off-list". Although many subscribers had a knowledge and even love of works of the American Musical Theater (which includes both Broadway and West End), attendees of NewOp/NonOp meetings know that "the commercial theater" was pretty irrelevant to most participants.
  • As can be seen from the list of NewOp/NonOp Sponsors and Attendees, most NewOp/NonOp meetings had been in Europe. A survey in 2004 of the C-Opera subscriber list revealed C-Opera participation from Australia, Canada, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, the United States, Israel, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Austria, Estonia, Norway, Bulgaria, Brazil, Ecuador, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Iceland, Latvia and Poland. There were over 200 subscribers, and the 2004 survey revealed that 68% had attended or planned on attending at least one NewOp/NonOp meeting.

    How do I join C-Opera?

    C-Opera is no longer operable, so this section has been deleted.

    Who is on C-Opera?

    An alphabetized list of the membership, circa 2000, has been placed here.

    How do I use the C-Opera listserv?

    C-Opera is no longer operable, so this section has been deleted.

    Listserv subscribers who never post to the list are referred to as "lurkers." The 2004 survey revealed that 38% of the listserv subscribers were lurkers.

    How do I search the C-Opera archive?

    C-Opera is no longer operable, so this section has been deleted. Since the listserv was password-protected, the Wayback Machine was not able to archive its contents, but you can find this page, listing activity on the listserv from January 1996 to February 2005, here.

    What other options do I have?

    We have reached out to the University of New Brunswick Archives & Special Collections Digital Collections Archivist for information on how the digital archives can be accessed. At this writing they are searching; the files are not part of their current digital collection.

    How do I unsubscribe?

    C-Opera is no longer operable, so this ssection has been deleted.

    You can find the older version of this webpage here.

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