Bold. Forward. together.
Announcing our 2026/27 Season
Washington National Opera’s 2026/27 season has arrived—and it is unlike anything in our history. We enter our next season as a fully independent company—bold in vision, forward in spirit, and powered by you!
This season celebrates bold artistic ambition, fearless creativity, and the extraordinary power of live performance. Featuring internationally acclaimed artists including Renée Fleming, Christine Goerke, Thomas Hampson, Karah Son, Isabel Leonard, Amber R. Monroe, Gregory Kunde, and more, WNO’s season invites audiences into immersive new productions, beloved classics, groundbreaking contemporary works, and entirely new theatrical experiences.
Join us as we transform the opera experience across the Washington, D.C. region—from a reimagined DAR Constitution Hall, to Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater, to Harman Hall at Shakespeare Theater Company, to The Music Center at Strathmore — each space designed to bring you closer to the art than ever before.
This is not just a season—it’s a movement.
Subscriptions Update [August 16, 2026]
Subscriptions are now closed. Please bear with us as we work on seating our subscribers and prepare to open up individual ticket sales in September.
Limited premium seats available now for Madama Butterfly, Nixon in China, and We the People concert. Email tickets@washnatopera.org or call 202.796.0071 option 1.
Our Shows & Venues
Madama Butterfly
Nixon in China
We the People
at DAR Constitution Hall
1776 D St. NW, Washington, DC 20006
(Pictured above; design by Walt Spangler)
Odyssey
at Kreeger Theater at the Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater
1101 6th Street SW, Washington, DC 20024
American Opera Initiative:
WOLF | LAMBS
at WNO Studio
6925 Willow Street NW, 3rd Floor, Washington, DC 20012
O'Keeffe: Kiss the Sky
Mozart's Idomeneo : A Trojan Tale
at Harman Hall at Shakespeare Theatre Company
610 F St. NW, Washington, DC 20004
La traviata
at The Music Center at Strathmore
5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD 20852
Explore our productions
Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly
November 7, 13, 18, 20 at 7pm, & 15 at 2pm
DAR Constitution Hall
Puccini’s timeless tragedy returns in a striking new production on WNO’s Revolutionary Stage. Korean soprano Karah Son makes her company debut as Cio-Cio-San alongside tenor Matthew White and Cafritz Young Artist alumna Michelle Mariposa. Directed by E. Loren Meeker in a setting evocative of Japan by Walt Spangler, this immersive staging brings Butterfly’s devastating emotional journey thrillingly close.
Nixon in China
Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly
November 14, 19 at 7pm, & 21 at 2pm
DAR Constitution Hall
Political spectacle meets intimate human drama in John Adams’s modern masterpiece. Superstar soprano Renée Fleming opposite acclaimed baritone Thomas Hampson return to the WNO stage as Pat and Richard Nixon. Conducted by Robert Spano and directed by Elkhanah Pulitzer, this reimagined production blends rare archival footage, bold visual storytelling, and Adams’s electrifying score into an unforgettable theatrical event.
We the People
Madama Butterfly
Odyssey - Holiday Opera
November 22 at 4pm
DAR Constitution Hall
A sweeping concert event featuring Renée Fleming, Thomas Hampson, and Marian Anderson Vocal Award winner Amber R. Monroe, We the People explores humanity’s enduring longing for liberty through some of opera’s most stirring music—from Nabucco to Il Trovatore and beyond.
Odyssey - Holiday Opera
American Opera Initiative: WOLF | LAMBS
Odyssey - Holiday Opera
Dec. 18 at 5pm, Dec. 19 at 2pm & 5pm, and Dec. 20 at 2pm & 5pm
Kreeger Theater at the Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater
Perfect for families and first-time audiences, Ben Moore and Kelley Rourke’s Odyssey transforms Greek myth into a vibrant 70-minute theatrical adventure featuring large-scale puppetry, featuring WNO’s Youth Chorus, Cafritz Young Artists, and orchestra.
American Opera Initiative: WOLF | LAMBS
American Opera Initiative: WOLF | LAMBS
American Opera Initiative: WOLF | LAMBS
Jan. 15 and 16 at 7pm
WNO Studio
WNO continues its commitment to developing new American works through two bold new operas by composer JL Marlor and librettist Clare Bierman exploring identity, ideology, friendship, and violence on a contemporary college campus.
O'Keeffe: Kiss the Sky - World Premiere
American Opera Initiative: WOLF | LAMBS
American Opera Initiative: WOLF | LAMBS
Mar. 12, 18, & 26 at 7pm, and Mar. 14 and 21 & 2pm
Harman Hall at Shakespeare Theatre Company
A major world premiere and one of the season's landmark events, O’Keeffe: Kiss the Sky is a groundbreaking new ballet-opera inspired by the life and vision of Georgia O’Keeffe, starring Isabel Leonard, Christine Goerke, and William Burden. With music by Grammy Award®- winner Christopher Tin, a libretto by Kelley Rourke, direction by Francesca Zambello, and choreography by Jessica Lang, the production fuses opera and ballet into a stunning theatrical experience.
Mozart's Idomeneo: A Trojan Tale
La traviata - Cafritz Young Artists
Mozart's Idomeneo: A Trojan Tale
Mar. 20, 25 at 7pm, and Mar. 27 at 2pm
Harman Hall at Shakespeare Theatre Company
Mozart’s mythic drama is reimagined by Francesca Zambello and Kelley Rourke in a fully immersive adaptation inspired by ancient Greek theater. Featuring tenor Gregory Kunde and current and former Cafritz Young Artists, this powerful retelling places raw human emotion at the center of Mozart’s magnificent score.
La traviata
La traviata - Cafritz Young Artists
Mozart's Idomeneo: A Trojan Tale
Apr. 29 at 7pm and May 1* at 6:30pm
The Music Center at Strathmore
Sempre Libera! One of opera’s most beloved masterpieces returns in Francesca Zambello’s elegant production, featuring Italian sensation, Francesca Pia Vitale as Violetta, opposite Ben Bliss as Alfredo. From glittering Parisian salons to heartbreaking sacrifice, La traviata remains one of opera’s most captivating and devastating love stories.
La traviata - Cafritz Young Artists
La traviata - Cafritz Young Artists
La traviata - Cafritz Young Artists
Apr. 30 at 7pm
The Music Center at Strathmore
The stars of tomorrow take the mainstage with a one-night-only performance of La traviata!
Meet our 2026/27 season artists
Renée Fleming is Pat Nixon in Nixon in China; and sings in We the People
Thomas Hampson is Richard Nixon in Nixon in China; and sings in We the People
Isabel Leonard is Georgia O'Keeffe in O'Keeffe: Kiss the Sky
Karah Son is Cio-Cio-San in Madama Butterfly
Christine Goerke is Mabel Dodge in O'Keefe: Kiss the Sky
Matthew White is Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly
Will Livermore is Sharpless in Madama Butterfly
Michelle Mariposa is Suzuki in Madama Butterfly
Amber R. Monroe is WNO's 2026/27 Marian Anderson Award Winner
Joo Won Kang is Chou En-Lai in Nixon in CHina
William Burden is Alfred Stieglitz in O'Keeffe: Kiss the Sky
Viviana Goodwin is Ilia in Idomeneo
Rodell Rosel is Goro in Madama Butterfly
Kathleen Kim is Madame Mao in Nixon in China
WNO Cafritz Young Artists take on Idomeneo and La traviata
Francesa Zambello directs Madama Butterfly, Odyssey, Idomeneo, and La traviata
E. Loren Meeker directs Madama Butterfly
Elkhanah Pulitzer directs Nixon in China
Donald Lee III conducts Odyssey
George Manahan conducts O'Keeffe: Kiss the Sky
Explore our 2026/27 season!
Madama Butterfly - In Nagasaki, love takes flight on fragile wings.
Nixon in China ~ Experience a clash of titans in “the week that changed the world.”
We the People - Special Concert, Nov. 22 at 4pm
Odyssey - Heroes, monsters, and mortals collide on an epic journey home!
American Opera Initiative: WOLF | LAMBS new American works
Mozart's Idomeneo: A Trojan Tale - For family, every bargain has a price.
O'Keeffe: Kiss the Sky - The untamed beauty of O’Keeffe’s America — painted in music and movement.
La traviata - She’s the life of the party. But love comes at a price.