Current opportunities

We are recruiting trustees!

WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR

We are seeking new trustees to join our board; offering support, provocation, expertise, and championing Northern Opera Group as we continue to shape our repertoire and ambitions.

There is no specific qualification required to join a board, and we are keen to appoint trustees with a wide variety of personal and lived experience. Beyond the arts sector, we are especially interested in individuals with experience in the following areas:

Financial acumen

HR, Policy and Governance

Business development (including mixed income-streams, fundraising, sponsorship and philanthropy)

Capital project experience

PR/Media Strategy

We currently have four trustees: Alan Williams (Chair), Emily Simpson, George Leigh and John Savournin, working alongside our community trustee Heather Watson. Our board meetings take place four times a year (quarterly), either online or in-person in Leeds. Our trustees commit to reading board papers in advance, so that they can interrogate and advise on both the artistic vision and business plans for the company, presented by the senior leadership team during board meetings. Between meetings, trustees attend various subcommittee meetings as required and stay connected to the company through informal conversations with the leadership team, and attending Northern Opera Group events.

A trusteeship is a voluntary and unremunerated position and carries legal responsibilities. Further information may be found on the Government’s website through this link: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/charity-trustee-whats-included

WHO WE ARE

Northern Opera Group is a small-but-mighty organisation developing and producing new opera in Leeds and beyond. We commission thrilling artists to make brilliant new work, that speaks to the audiences of today and defines the artform of tomorrow. We focus on sustainability for people, art and the planet, meaning that we pay artists fairly for their work, set high targets on environmental responsibility, and plan for each project to have longevity and broad reach, rather than dashing to the next thing in pursuit of high-volume output.

Every two years, we premiere new productions and works-in-progress at our Leeds New Opera Festival, accompanied by talks, workshops, gatherings and training opportunities that create conversation spaces for audiences and artists, and foster the next generation of both. Our ongoing projects include a digital micro-commissioning strand, working with composers and sector partners across the UK to celebrate the diversity and innovation of opera, and a community-focused research project exploring possibilities for creating a sustainable, accessible nomadic opera house.

Founded in 2015 by David Ward and Louise Garner, Northern Opera Group established a strong community presence in Leeds, performing rare repertoire and new commissions for audiences across the region, many of whom were first-time opera attendees. Since 2025, the company has been under the new artistic leadership of Fay Jennett (Executive Director) and Jude Christian (Artistic Director), shifting to a sole focus on new work shaped by Fay and Jude’s wide-ranging experience writing, directing, developing and creative producing contemporary opera and theatre at the Royal Opera House, Britten Pears, Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, the Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool Everyman, Manchester Royal Exchange, Shakespeare’s Globe, Factory International and Copenhagen Opera Festival.

Our 2026 Leeds New Opera Festival runs from 5th-7th November includes the Leeds premiere of Our Eyes Looking for God by Renell Shaw, TD. Moyo and April Koyejo-Audiger, following the world premiere at the Barbican in September. Alongside co-producing this opera debut from an acclaimed creative team, we will present works-in-progress of Hey Maudie by renowned visual artist Rachel Jones and composer Joseph Howard, and Ultramarine by poly-hyphenate April Koyejo-Audiger.

PROCESS FOR EXPRESSING AN INTEREST

Please send your CV to Alan Williams at info@northernoperagroup.co.uk with a brief covering letter (no more than one side of A4) outlining:

Why you are interested in working with Northern Opera Group; and

What skills make you particularly well suited for joining the board.

If this format doesn’t work for you, please get in touch with Fay fay@northernoperagroup.co.uk and she will be happy to help find a solution that works.

Applications must be received before 6pm on 14 September 2026.

QUESTIONS

For questions about joining the board, please contact Alan Williams, Chair of the Board of Trustees (via info@northernoperagroup.co.uk), to arrange a confidential conversation.