Forward from the programme by the Genesis Foundation Chairman, John Studzinski

I want to thank every one of you who has made the effort to attend these workshops of the second Genesis Opera Project (GOP) and to welcome you. I remember vividly the excitement and sense of discovery as well as the accomplishments at the first GOP workshops in this same venue - and I hope we are establishing a tradition of an event that is an important part of the process of refreshing opera as a genre and an inspiration in itself.

As on the previous occasion, you will be seeing the culmination of several months' work and experience: first a reading of the full libretto by actors; followed by the performance of several minutes of the work-in-progress by musicians and singers; and then an open discussion involving the creative team, the participating musicians and actors, the panellists and you, the audience. Your criticisms and reactions are of major importance and value in this process, and we hope you will feel free to voice your questions, comments, criticisms and suggestions.

We are still developing the Genesis Opera Project. A scheme like this, which is unique in the world, takes time to bed down. It is an ambitious process and we want to get it as right as we possibly can. But we are working in a world today in which there is an almost complete lack of opera-writing opportunity and in which even the conservatories see opera writing as a poor relation. Ours is a long-term project because very few young composers have the skills and experience required to work in this area successfully.

Since the first Genesis Opera Project in 2002/03, we have made changes to the process. We are putting more emphasis on the various stages of creating a new opera and less on the final production cycle. For GOP2, at every point along the way, new courses and workshops are being introduced for the teams to learn basic opera-writing skills and to have mentors who can give them advice specific to their projects. The teams selected from the workshops to develop their works fully will also have more time for revisions and changes after delivery of the full scores. The Genesis Opera Project is about process, not competition and so there will be no 'overall winner' or cash prize.

The Genesis Foundation wants to take this opportunity especially to thank Sadler's Wells and its chief executive, Jean-Luc Choplin, not just for the use of this venue but for being a true partner in the presentations of GOP2. They have given us the Lilian Baylis Theatre and supported our presence in this building for two weeks, enabling us to work with concentration and consistency.

The Genesis Foundation is also pleased to be a part of the 2004 Opera Music Theatre Forum (OMTF) conference. We are delighted to link GOP2 and the Genesis Foundation to a body that represents the art form with which we are so concerned. The presence in our audience of delegates to this conference enhances our own aims here at the Lilian Baylis and we hope that this will also stimulate their own talks and ideas.

What you are seeing over these two days is a series of works-in-progress, some, perhaps, at a delicate and vulnerable stage of development, but also at a time where input and advice from you could ultimately stimulate the creation of important, innovative and influential work. We are all here to give that the best chance of happening!

John J. Studzinski
Chairman, Genesis Foundation