Opera Classica

Opera Classica Europa is an opera production company founded by tenor and director Michael Vaccaro. Since 2004 it has presented operas and concerts at historic venues in Germany and elsewhere in Europe, frequently using open-air stages. Its productions have ranged from Verdi's Aida, Nabucco and Rigoletto to Puccini's Tosca, Madama Butterfly and Turandot, alongside French and German repertoire. Vaccaro's work as producer and stage director links the company's touring activity with performances adapted to historic settings. From Esslingen am Neckar, a former free imperial city upstream of Stuttgart, this ensemble works in the touring manner that has kept opera moving between provincial theatres and summer stages for well over a century. Bizet's Carmen is among the productions it has carried — inevitably, since no opera travels more reliably or fills an unfamiliar house more quickly.