At the National Opera Studio, we have always prided ourselves on our fairness and openness as an organisation, however, the Black Lives Matter movement has resonated deeply with our Staff, Artists and Board, and we felt that it was important to take a hard look at ourselves.  We believe that we must affirm and openly state that we are an inclusive and anti-racist organisation. We condemn racism, discrimination and inequity in all its forms.

 

We have always felt that the diversity of our alumni is a strong testament to our legacy of being an organisation that champions exceptional operatic talent regardless of age, disability, gender, physical and mental health, parental status, race, religion and beliefs, sex, or sexual orientation.

 

We will never be a box-ticking organisation, or simply pay lip-service to issues of inequality. Alongside delivering our renowned Young Artists’ Programme, we are taking a lead with the industry to make opera stages representative of the multicultural society in which we live.

 

We are announcing our Diverse Voices programme, which will provide support and guidance to singers from under-represented ethnic backgrounds across the UK. We are also inspiring conversations and raising awareness of issues around disability, gender, and physical and mental health through our Living Opera article series.  We have an open audition policy, meaning that, where possible, we audition every singer and répétiteur who applies to us.

 

Over the last three years, 21% of our Young Artists identify as being from under-represented ethnic backgrounds.  However, when digging deeper into the figures of those applying to our Young Artists’ Programme, there are areas where we are falling way short of the mark. Over the last three years, only six (0.79%) of our 764 applicants have identified as Black or Black British, with zero identifying as Black Caribbean or Black British Caribbean. We consider this a failure on our part and we have to do better.  We must listen and learn from those around us and improve our engagement with these groups in particular.

 

Inclusivity requires continuous proactivity, and we are steadfast in our resolve to constantly improve.  The incredibly important awareness-raising achieved through Black Lives Matter has given us cause to stop, listen, learn and reflect.  It has helped us to identify areas where we can make immediate changes.  Further details of these along with further statistics can be found below.

 

Our art is made stronger through diversity.  We reject prejudice and will not tolerate it or ignore it. We listen, we consider, we evolve.

  

Our Actions

 

We have identified several areas where we can and must do better, and we are committed to taking immediate steps to become a more inclusive and open organisation:

 

• We will create a new Inclusivity Action Group, made up of representatives from our staff, artists, coaches, board and audiences. This board will meet regularly throughout the year to discuss developments and pass on improvements and suggestions to the Chief Executive.  The Inclusivity Action Group will also assess whether the organisation is meeting these commitments and related policies.

 

• We will no longer use the terms BME, BAME or People of Colour. We recognise and value the importance of individuality and, where possible, we will break down statistics to demonstrate the full tapestry of diversity in our organisation. Where this is not possible, we would group statistics under the term “people from under-represented ethnic backgrounds”.

 

• We will provide Diversity, Equality and Inclusion training to all staff and regular coaches.

 

• We will investigate and take immediate action if any racism, discrimination or inequitable behaviour is alleged to have taken place by anyone representing or affiliated with the National Opera Studio.

 

• We will ensure that all opportunities at the Studio are marketed widely and introduce equal opportunities monitoring at application stage for all positions so that we can assess our effectiveness at encouraging diverse candidates.

 

• We will publish diversity statistics within our annual report and through social media each year.

 

• We will encourage discussion and resource sharing among our staff and artists on issues of diversity and equality.

 

National Opera Studio Artists Ethnic Background Statistics
2018-2021

 

 

	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	Total	Percentage
White (British)	10	5	7	22	46.81%
White (Irish)	0	0	1	1	2.13%
Any other White background	5	6	3	14	29.79%
(Asian or Asian British) Indian	0	0	0	0	0%
Other Asian or Asian British Background	1	1	0	2	4.26%
Chinese or Chinese British	0	1	0	1	2.13%
(Black or Black British) African	0	1	1	2	4.26%
(Black or Black British) Caribbean	0	0	0	0	0%
Any other Black or Black British background	0	0	0	0	0%
Any other Ethnic Group	0	3	0	3	6.38%
(Mixed Heritage) White and Black African	0	0	0	0	0%
(Mixed Heritage) White and Black Caribbean	0	0	1	1	2.13%
(Mixed Heritage) White and Asian	0	0	1	1	2.13%
Any other Mixed Heritage Background	0	0	0	0	0%
Gypsy or Irish Traveller	0	0	0	0	0%
Total	16	17	14	47	100%