About English National Opera (ENO)
English National Opera traces its roots back to 1931 when Lilian Baylis established the Sadler’s Wells Opera Company at the newly re-opened the Sadler’s Wells Theatre.
Baylis had been presenting opera concerts and theatre in London since 1898 and was passionate about providing audiences with the best theatre and opera at affordable prices, a belief that remains today at the heart of ENO.
During the Second World War the Sadler’s Wells Theatre was closed and the company toured the provinces, returning to its home in June 1945 for the world premiere of Benjamin Britten’s Peter Grimes. Britten remains a core part of ENO’s repertoire along with a world-class reputation of presenting Handel and Glass operas and championing Gilbert and Sulivan operettas.
In 1968 Sadler’s Wells Opera relocated from Sadler’s Wells Theatre to the London Coliseum, a theatre designed by Frank Matcham in 1904 for the theatre impresario Oswald Stoll. Six years after the move to the London Coliseum, the Company was renamed English National Opera.
English National Opera Mission
English National Opera is founded on the belief that opera of the highest quality should be accessible to everyone.
At ENO opera is theatre; expressing drama through the unique combination of music, text, dance, and design. They sing in English and believe that singing in our own language connects the performers and the audience to the drama onstage, and enhances the experience for all.
ENO collaborates across contemporary art forms, to reflect the growing diversity of our culture. And they take a fresh approach right across the repertoire, from baroque to contemporary, as well as commissioning new works as part of our commitment to the future of the art form.
At the heart of the ENO is the drive to bring opera productions to the widest possible audience, whether at the London Coliseum, nationally or internationally. They make their work accessible by offering a large proportion of tickets at affordable prices, and by distributing it via broadcast and digital media.
ENO’s vision is to be synonymous with making great opera accessible to the widest and most diverse audiences. They work to forge ground-breaking collaborations across art forms, and their world-class productions inspire, surprise and captivate. They want to be recognised as the national centre of excellence for developing opera, and as the benchmark for nurturing new talent.
The Opportunity
Ellwood Atfield is delighted to be working with ENO to hire a Head of Communications to take overall responsibility for the media and public relations strategy.
The purpose of the position it to promote ENO’s mission that Opera should be accessible to everyone. The successful applicant will lead the team to increase the editorial spread of coverage maximising the coverage and support for ENO’s artistic programme and brand messaging. In addition, the Head of Communications will be responsible for ENO’s celebrity/influencer strategy.
Based at the rehearsal studios at Lilian Baylis House in West Hampstead this is a significant position within the organisation, working closely with the CEO and senior leadership team, and reporting to the Director of Marketing and Audience Engagement.