Richard Gaddes, General Director
Richard Gaddes came to The Santa Fe Opera in 1969 as its Artistic Administrator and served in that position until 1979. In 1976 he founded Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, where he served as General Director until 1985. He returned to The Santa Fe Opera in 1994 and in October, 2000 succeeded founder John Crosby as General Director. In August 2006, Opera News cited him as one of the "25 Most Influential People" in the world of American opera. He will serve as General Director through September 30, 2008, after which he will be succeeded by Charles MacKay, currently the General Director of Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.
Highlights of his tenure in St. Louis included an invitation to be the first American opera company to perform at the Edinburgh International Festival, in 1983. The company's 1976 staging of Benjamin Britten's Albert Herring was the first television production of an opera in America by BBC-TV. The careers of many American singers were launched in St. Louis, including Jerry Hadley, Thomas Hampson, Erie Mills, Susanne Mentzer, Sylvia McNair and Vinson Cole. American composer Stephen Paulus wrote his first opera for St. Louis, Louise Nevelson designed her first stage set, and stage director Jonathan Miller made his American debut there.
Notable achievements during his eight seasons as head of Santa Fe include the American premieres of Kaija Saariaho's L'amour de loin and Adriana Mater, Thomas Ades's The Tempest, and Tan Dun's Tea: A Mirror of Soul, along with the world premiere of Bright Sheng's Madame Mao and an acclaimed staging of Osvaldo Golijov's Aindamar. He greatly expanded the company's community profile, offering simulcasts of La sonnambula in 2004 and La boheme in 2007, as well as a series of community-based productions.
Charles MacKay, General Director Designate
Charles MacKay grew up in Santa Fe and graduated from Santa Fe High School before attending the University of Minnesota. His career in music began at The Santa Fe Opera, first as a member of the orchestra and orchestra assistant. He subsequently held several administrative positions, including box office manager, development manager, and business manager. In all, MacKay spent ten years in Santa Fe, leaving in 1979 to join the Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston, South Carolina, as Director of Finance and Administration.
He was hired by Richard Gaddes, General Director of the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis in l984 and became its General Director in 1985. In his 23-year tenure, MacKay has led the company to become one of the nation's most admired and innovative opera companies. He hired and fostered careers of many young American singers, commissioned eight world premieres and staged many new or unusual works. Under his leadership, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis's endowment has grown from $682,000 to the present $20 million. Active in national opera affairs, MacKay is currently Chairman of the Board of OPERA America.