THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, August 5, 1994 TAG: 9408050614
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARK MOBLEY MUSIC CRITIC
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Short : 47 lines
Virginia Opera general manager Kenneth Freeman will become general director of the Canadian company Opera Hamilton in January. Freeman, a native of Calgary, has served three years as Virginia Opera's second in command.
Freeman, 38, joined Virginia in 1990 as administrative director. In 1991 he was named general manager, serving as the ranking administrator under longtime general director Peter Mark.
Freeman will be the executive and artistic head of Opera Hamilton, which has a budget of roughly $2 million. The company mounts four productions a season, one of which is a concert presentation of opera highlights with international stars.
``In a lot of ways it reminds me of Virginia Opera a decade ago,'' Freeman said. ``There's a lot of potential there for growth.'' His goals include producing four fully staged operas and expanding the company's reach, in the manner of Virginia Opera's multicity performance schedule.
Freeman said he was approached by a number of companies. He accepted the Opera Hamilton position on the condition that he remain in Norfolk through the Jan. 20 premiere of Thea Musgrave's ``Simon Bolivar.''
Freeman began his career in the arts after doctoral studies and professional practice in economics. He is a former general manager of the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, Conn.
In 1992, he oversaw Virginia Opera's Latin American tour. He also negotiated a subcontracting agreement with the Virginia Symphony for pit musicians, ending the company's practice of hiring its own players. He was instrumental in the company's expansion to Fairfax and the conversion of the Center Theater into the Harrison Opera House.
Freeman has served on the board of WHRO public broadcasting and TACT, the South Hampton Roads AIDS service organization. He is also on the board of the arts-lobbying group Virginians for the Arts. He became a U.S. citizen earlier this year. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Virginia Opera's Kenneth Freeman is going to the Canadian company
Opera Hamilton.
by CNB