On 12 December staff from Opera North departments including communications, development, education, music and projects enjoyed a fascinating insight into how archives are developed and conserved at Special Collections at the University of Leeds.

It is a landmark moment in the history of Opera North.  As the Company celebrates its 40th anniversary, it also embarks on Music Works, a major capital project that will transform its building to offer more to students, academics, artists and the public. The fledgling Opera North Archive at Special Collections at the University of Leeds was started with Opera North’s first capital campaign in 2006.  So as the next project starts, it is the ideal time to take it to the next level, to create a more comprehensive, accessible resource for those interested in the history of the Company and its work.

We’re off the starting blocks! The conversation between the Special Collections and Opera North teams has started, we have a better understanding of the material we want to collect, and we aim to have a clear archive structure in place when the building work is complete in spring 2020.