Long Beach Opera's Dr. Derrell Acon Discusses the Future of Opera in the Wake of Black Lives Matter

Dr. Derrell Acon, the director of Engagement and Equity at Long Beach Opera, recently talked with Spectrum News 1 about the future of opera in the wake of Black Lives Matter.

"The opera world is going through what I call right now a racial awakening in that we're understanding that the inequity that a lot of us perceive as black folks and other people of color has not been as understood by the larger industry," Acon said."There are many operas being written on different experiences, other than the white experience."

Acon says that he has seen many problems and inequalities that performers of color face in the opera industry.

"There are several problems, unfortunately," Acon said. "I would say some of the most pressing problems begin in the boardroom. Most boards are all white."

To help correct this, Acon organized panels to hold conversations about race and its place in opera. He also encouraged Long Beach Opera to produce productions written by people of color.

"Opera, from the beginning of time, has always been about engaging the most potent societal issues," he said. "They always do well financially. They also do well in terms of bringing in new audiences. So that seems like something that is an obvious step towards really lending oneself to equity because we know that that model is successful."

Read more on Spectrum News 1.