How Royal Opera House Muscat is playing an instrumental role in Omani society

As it turns 13, the celebrated venue is stepping up its co-productions as well as outreach programmes

Royal Opera House Muscat kicked off its latest season with Verdi's Un Ballo In Maschera. Photo: Royal Opera House Muscat

Last week, Chinese vocalists took to the stage with an Italian orchestra to perform a lavish opera set in Sweden at the regal Royal Opera House Muscat. Both stagings of the opera, Giuseppe Verdi’s Un Ballo In Maschera (The Masked Ball), were sold out.

It’s this kind of cosmopolitan mix that has made the Royal Opera House Muscat, one of the most prestigious venues in Oman, a hit with audiences. This weekend, as it celebrates its 13th anniversary, the opera house is as buzzy as ever.

Adjacent to the opera house lobby – with its pristine marble floors, arched ceilings and wooden roof festooned with crystal chandeliers – is a hidden warren of rooms housing busy rehearsal spaces. In one, Italy’s Orchestra della Fondazione del Teatro Lirico di Cagliari rehearses under the baton of conductor Giampaolo Bisanti. Nearby, the rich baritone notes of Chinese opera singer Liao Changyong emanate from his rehearsal space.

Walking through this mix of nerves and precision is Umberto Fanni, who celebrates his 10th year as director general of the Royal Opera House Muscat. In his role, he is responsible for the venue’s artistic programme.

Fanni, an Italian, knows all about opening nights. He was there during the opera house’s launch in 2011, then as the artistic director of the Fondazione Arena di Verona, when it presented a version of Giacomo Puccini's Turandot – a performance attended by the late Sultan Qaboos bin Said.

The successful launch, conducted by Spanish tenor Placido Domingo, led to Fanni being offered the chance to lead the venue in 2015. He knew the job would be special, given the questions during the interview process.

"It was a gruelling interview that went on for three hours and I remember being shocked when one of the first questions was how I was willing to plan the long-term development of this institution, up to 2030 and 2040," he tells The National. "You have to understand that in the opera world, particularly in Europe, the idea of such long-term thinking is almost non-existent. We normally plan just for the performance calendar and that’s the extent of it."

Such a visionary approach required a new way of thinking from Fanni and his team. Moving from being a venue that solely brought international houses and companies to Oman, the opera house adopted the model of a performing arts centre, with the capacity to produce and co-produce international shows to tour the world.

That model is already bearing fruit – the Leo Delibes opera Lakme, a 2019 co-production with China’s National Centre for Performing Arts Beijing, is preparing for an extensive world tour.

"It began in Oman and now it is ready to go to Los Angeles, followed by China and Australia in 2027," Fanni says. "Making a financial return from the investment is important, but it’s not as vital as the value of bringing culture to your people and the world. The visibility and profile that comes with that is also a very welcome addition."

More than highlighting the Royal Opera House Muscat’s pedigree on the international stage, the value of these partnerships is keenly felt behind the curtain. Over the past decade, Fanni says, scores of Omanis were seconded to opera houses in China and Europe to learn technical skills, from stage lighting to management.

The result, Fanni says, is that 91 per cent of the opera house’s 237 staff are Omani. That figure is likely to increase with the opera house’s extensive outreach programme, which taps into Omani schools and universities.

"We have a strong educational programme that we began five years ago, done in consultation with the Omani Ministry of Education, where we go to schools and talk about the history of opera with a musicologist or some singers," he says. "We are also proud of the fact that we go to hospitals and work with organisations helping people with autism, using art therapy programmes as well. The point is to make the opera house part of the fabric of Omani society, not just a place to visit. We are happy enough to come to you."

That exchange goes both ways, as the opera house gradually integrates more aspects of Omani culture into its programming. From November 7 to 9, the Omani Royal Guard Military Band will perform a leading role as part of the annual Military Music Festival, while local artists and groups will feature in the Folk Music Festival from January 2 to 4.

"Sometimes that partnership is more subtle, like when we integrate local Omani talent into international shows," Fanni says. "We have added Omani singers from the chorus of the Omani Royal Guard Military Band into western productions, and that is powerful for both the musicians and the audience, who get to see fellow nationals performing at the highest level with their international peers."

Despite the steady leaps into the future, some traditions persist. Fanni says his main focus is to successfully pull off another performance season, which will end with two concerts by Lebanese crooner Ragheb Alama in May. As for remaining in the director’s chair until the 2030 plans are reached, Fanni is uncertain.

"In our industry, there is a saying that to develop a project takes 10 years to build and another five to enjoy what we’ve built, and then you make way for others to develop it further," he says. "While there is still plenty of work to do, I am glad we achieved one of our main aims – making Omanis feel that this opera house is their home."