OPERA America Announces 2023 Opera Hall of Fame Inductees

Seven exceptional artists, administrators, and advocates will be inducted into the Opera Hall of Fame as the Class of 2023

Founded in 1970 and based in New York, OPERA America is a service organization, whose membership includes over 600 opera companies, educational institutions, affiliated businesses, and other entities. 

To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the Opera Hall of Fame was launched in 2020 to recognize the achievements of living American and Canadian artists, administrators, and advocates, who have strengthened opera and the opera industry.

The 2023 Opera Hall of Fame inductees are:

• Michael Bronson, arts administrator and producer
• Wayne S. Brown, arts leader and administrator
• Anthony Davis, composer and teacher
• Susan Feder, arts funder and advocate
• Frayda B. Lindemann, trustee and philanthropist
• Sherrill Milnes, baritone and teacher
• Frederica von Stade, mezzo-soprano and humanitarian

With nominations open to the public every winter, each potential inductee was reviewed by a selection committee of opera industry professionals. This year’s inductees were chosen from a pool of 166 nominees.

The inductees are considered on the criteria of displaying exceptional leadership and/or advocacy; advancing opera through the creation, production, and performance of new or existing works; plus inspiring future artists and leaders through a mentorship role.

OPERA America will induct this year’s Opera Hall of Fame honorees at the OPERA America Salutes awards dinner on January 26, 2024, in New York City. 

The evening will be attended by recipients of the 2023 National Opera Trustee Recognition Award, plus feature performances by singers from the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. 

Funds from the night will go toward OPERA America’s professional development programs. Tickets are available here.

“The contributions to the field of the 2023 Opera Hall of Fame recipients cannot be overstated,” said OPERA America’s president and CEO, Marc A. Scorca. “We look forward to saluting these remarkable individuals who have shaped the field through their talent, dedication, and generosity. They have paved the way to a bright future for opera.”

Bronson was an administrator at the Met Opera where he produced 10 years of the “Live from the Met” TV series. He also consults the Electronic Media Association which represents over 120 opera companies and symphony orchestras.

Brown has been the president and CEO of Detroit Opera since 2014, and Davis is acclaimed for writing the operas X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X and The Central Park Five, among others. 

An arts and culture program officer at the Mellon Foundation, Feder is also the vice president of G. Schirmer and editorial coordinator of The New Grove Dictionary of American Music. Lindemann is a board member of Lincoln Center, president emerita of the Met Opera Association, and was elected chair of OPERA America in 2012

Milnes was a mainstay on the Met Opera stage where he appeared over 650 times. An opera star, Von Stade has performed at the Met 300 times following her debut in 1970.

Nominations for the 2024 Opera Hall of Fame will open on December 1, 2023, and close on January 15, 2024. For more information, click here.