Our first season (2003) consisted of our Lights Up! Gala concert and our inaugural production, The Merry Widow, for a total of 4 performances. Our second season (2003-04) was greatly expanded. It began with our Summer Concert Series in Topsfield, our 2nd Lights Up Gala concert in Boston, and continued with three new productions: The (In)Compleat Works of Gilbert and Sullivan, All The Things You Are: A Jerome Kern Celebration, and the world premiere of the new musical Smooth Sailing. Our third season brought us America’s Song, a concert featuring our artists plus the new NELO Concert Chorale, the smash hit Night and Day: A Cole Porter Celebration and the first Boston production in 75 years of Sigmund Romberg’s The New Moon. Our fourth season included My Favorite Things: A Richard Rodgers Celebration, our first Viennese Ball, and the world premiere of our new By Strauss! Show. Our fifth season included our first full production, The Gilbert and Sullivan Radio Hour and our original Gershwin revue, Fascinatin’ Rhythm. Season six featured the premiere of our original musical Yes, Yes, Jeanette! A Musical Fantasy on Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald and our original revue The Roaring 20’s. With season seven we weathered the economic crisis by partnering with other organizations in productions of previous works. Partners included the Firehouse Center for the Arts, Central Church in Lynn, and Salem State College. We also participated in a year long residency with the music and theater departments of Salem State that involved masterclasses, performances, and leading their students in a production of The Pirates of Penzance.

New England Light Opera is a musical theatre company for the whole region and our shows have been performed in many communities from the North Shore to Boston, and metro west to the Cape. To date we have performed in some 20 different towns and cities throughout the region
We have also now produced 42 Summer Concerts, 7 Rising Stars High School programs, live appearances on WBGH and WERS, and numerous other for hire performances. We look forward in years to come to continuing our concerts, as well as adding full productions. There’s so many great shows out there: from operettas like The Student Prince, The Count of Luxemburg and The Chocolate Soldier, to classic Broadway shows like Brigadoon, and Anything Goes. There’s also great shows and scores waiting to be rediscovered; from the European operettas of composers like Offenbach and Kalman, to the early American musicals of Kern, Gershwin, and more. Join us on our journey as we bring great music and theater to audiences throughout eastern Massachusetts!”

LYNDA FAIRBANKS ATKINS,
President of the Board, is a marketing and capital development professional with experience in the for-profit and not-for-profit worlds and has held senior development positions at several area organizations.

ELIOT SHERMAN, Treasurer, has more than 30 years of financial management experience in a wide range of organizations. He is on the faculties of two universities and lectures nationally for the American Institute of CPA's.

KAJA SCHUPPERT, Clerk of the Board, is an actress, singer, and professional fundraiser. Former director of the Annual Fund at the Roxbury Latin School, Kaja is often seen in concert, opera, and theatre performances through- out New England.

MARK MORGAN, Artistic Director, has worked professionally in almost every aspect of music and theatre production over the past 16 years. As a singer/actor, he has performed major roles with the Lyric Stage Company of Boston, the Ohio Light Opera, Ocean State Lyric Opera, and several other companies. As a conductor, he has worked with opera companies, theatres, churches and other organizations all over the country.

Mr. Morgan holds dual Masters Degrees in Voice and Conducting from Eastman School of Music and a Bachelor's Degree in music from Macalester College.