Santa Fe Opera 2026 Season Guide: American Premieres, Classic Masterpieces & New Mexico's Most Magical Summer Tradition
Every summer, something extraordinary happens on a hilltop north of Santa Fe. As the last light drains from the Jemez Mountains and the desert sky opens up above the Crosby Theatre's open roof, the Santa Fe Opera casts its spell — a spell that has drawn audiences for nearly seven decades. This summer, the 2026 season makes a case that some magic only gets richer with age.
The 69th Festival Season runs from July 3 through August 29, offering 38 performances across five mainstage productions: beloved Puccini and Mozart, a revival of Tchaikovsky, a rarely staged Handel gem, and an American premiere that may be the most talked-about opera of the year. Whether you're a first-timer drawn by the romance of the setting or a returning devotee with a favorite seat, here's what awaits you this season.
Madama Butterfly
Giacomo Puccini
In a nod to history — Puccini's tragic heroine was on stage for the company's very first performance in 1957 — the 2026 season opens with this celebrated production originally conceived by the late Lee Blakeley. Director Melanie Bacaling makes her Santa Fe Opera mainstage debut reviving it, bringing fresh eyes to one of opera's most enduring and heartbreaking stories. Conductor John Fiore leads a cast featuring soprano Karen Chia-ling Ho in the title role, with Stephen Costello as Pinkerton. Runs through August 29.
The Magic Flute
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
New Production
An international co-production with England's Garsington Opera, directed by Christopher Luscombe, brings Mozart's fantastical masterpiece to life under the New Mexico stars. With its mix of fairy-tale adventure, moral philosophy, and some of opera's most beloved arias, The Magic Flute is an ideal gateway for newcomers and a perennial joy for the devoted. Runs through August 28.
Alessandro Talevi's production, first presented during the 2021 season, returns in an enhanced revival with an entirEugene Onegin
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovskyely new international cast. Conductor Keri-Lynn Wilson makes her company debut leading Tchaikovsky's most intimate opera — a tale of love rejected and love lost, set to some of the most achingly beautiful music ever written for the stage. Making their American debuts are Azerbaijani mezzo-soprano Elmina Hasan and Peruvian tenor Iván Ayón-Rivas. Six performances, July 18 through August 19.
Rodelinda
George Frideric Handel
Company Premiere
Handel comes to the Crosby Theatre for the first time in a new production led by Santa Fe Opera Music Director and early music specialist Harry Bicket — a pairing almost too perfectly suited. Director R.B. Schlather's production, inspired by an acclaimed staging commissioned by Hudson Hall at the historic Hudson Opera House in New York, brings baroque drama to the high desert: a queen, a usurper, a loyal husband presumed dead, and music of breathtaking ornamentation. Don't miss this one.
Lili Elbe
Tobias Picker · American Premiere
American Premiere
The most anticipated event of the season. Grammy-winning composer Tobias Picker and librettist Aryeh Lev Stollman's opera tells the story of Lili Elbe — the Danish painter born Einar Wegener, one of the first known recipients of gender-affirming surgery in the 1930s. The title role is sung by celebrated Heldenbaritone Lucia Lucas, who also serves as dramaturg, bringing singular artistic authority and lived experience to the role. Maestro Roberto Kalb conducts. The subject is profound; the music, by all accounts, is equal to it. Five performances, August 1 through August 27.
The Experience Beyond the Stage
The Santa Fe Opera has always understood that a summer evening at the Crosby Theatre is more than a performance — it's a ritual. Arrive early for the pre-show tailgate in the parking area, a beloved tradition where picnic spreads range from paper bags to full candelabras. The theatre offers Preview Dinners, free Prelude Talks before performances, and behind-the-scenes tours for those who want to understand what it takes to mount five operas in eight weeks at 7,000 feet elevation.
And then there is the theatre itself. Open to the desert air, the Crosby frames every performance with the Sangre de Cristo Mountains to the east and a sky that shifts from deep cobalt to ink-black across Act I and Act II. It is a setting unlike any other opera house on earth — and it has shaped what opera can feel like for generations of New Mexicans and visitors who make the pilgrimage every summer.
The Apprentice Artists: Stars in the Making
One of the Santa Fe Opera's most treasured traditions is its Apprentice Artist program, which has launched the careers of some of the most prominent singers in opera today. On August 16, apprentice singers and technicians take center stage in a program of scenes from the repertoire. On August 23, they join the Santa Fe Opera Orchestra for a full concert. Both evenings are remarkable — and they are often where the most electric moments of the summer happen.
Plan Your Visit
Season dates: July 3 – August 29, 2026
Apprentice Scenes & Concert: August 16 & 23
Tickets: Individual tickets start at $37. Subscriptions offer the best value for multiple productions and early access to preferred dates and seating.
Box office: 800-280-4654 or 505-986-5900 ·
Monday–Friday, 9 am–5 pm MT
Book online at santafeopera.org
