Opportunities

Observerships aim to demystify the creative process with the Royal Ballet and Opera and demonstrate to emerging musicians and creatives the scale of working at an international opera house.

Observerships take place over the course of a single day or over multiple sessions within a single production period. Participants can join morning, afternoon and/or evening sessions on one day to see various productions at different stages in their creation, or visit a specific production at multiple points in their evolution. 

• Conductor observerships may include the opportunity to watch a Sitzprobe or orchestra alone, a stage orchestra rehearsal or a live show from backstage with an offstage band.
• Director observerships may include sessions ranging from chorus or cover calls in the studio to rehearsals on stage.
• Lighting designer observerships may involve spending the day with a range of lighting staff to understand the design journey from initial conception to realisation encompassing production meetings, a working rehearsal and the visualisation suite.

Deadline for applications
Applications for observerships in the 2024/2025 season will be accepted twice throughout the year. 

• Deadline 1: 17 September 2024
• Deadline 2: 7 January 2025

You can apply for both at the same time. However, observerships will only be assigned after each respective deadline. 

Apply for an Observership

We aim to reply to your application within two weeks of the deadline or sooner if the opportunity is imminent. Applications will be assessed by a variety of Royal Ballet and Opera departmental representatives and external guests.

We welcome applications from vocational students or early career creatives, musicians and stage directors from all backgrounds, heritages and nationalities. We will give priority consideration to people under-represented in our talent pool.

Bursaries (up to a maximum of £150) are available to UK-based applicants who cannot access these opportunities without financial support. Fill in the bursary application form in addition to the observership application form. Bursary applications will be automatically passed to a separate panel for assessment if you are shortlisted by the observership panel.

OPERA LAB: MAKING THE FUTURE OF OPERA

Are you a writer, poet, wordsmith, dramaturg, deviser, director or theatre-maker with a passion for storytelling and collaboration? Might your creative practice offer transferable skills to opera and music-theatre? 

Established makers new to and curious about opera are invited to the Royal Opera House for five weekends from for a deep dive into what it takes to make a successful piece of opera with the guidance and support of leading practitioners in the field.

The programme will explore what enables effective creative collaborations, and the intricate relationship between text, music and the operatic voice by exploring short-form operas with complete narratives of under ten minutes.

If you are excited to bring your storytelling expertise to a new medium and collaborate with others to push the boundaries of what opera can be, this opportunity is for you.

Please see below for information about the previous Opera Labs course.

• More information - Opera Labs: Making the Future of Opera (PDF - 267.6 KB)
• More information - Opera Labs: Making the Future of Opera (Word – 43.1 KB)
• Large print information - Opera Labs: Making the Future of Opera (Word – 39.8 KB)

Writing Opportunities

Directors Opportunities

Women and Marginalised Gender Conductors

Inspired by the pioneering work of Alice Farnham to improve the career prospects of women conductors, JPAP has run multiple courses for early career conductors. Experienced Royal Opera and guest conductors have shared their skills to help them navigate musical leadership. Over 60 conductors have benefitted from JPAP courses to date as both participants and observers. 

In August 2023, JPAP held a five-day conductors’ residency at Snape Maltings, in collaboration with Britten Pears Arts and ENOA, for women and marginalised gender conductors. The Conductor as Dramaturg, led by Kanako Abe and Sian Edwards, along with multi-disciplinary artist and composer Cee Haines, provided participants with the opportunity to prepare and perform excerpts from two recently composed scores. Both scores involved electronic technology: Oliver Leith’s Last Days and Bushra El-Turk’s Woman at Point Zero. On the course, participants delved into the creative possibilities of collaborative work with composers, directors, performers, and sound designers on new works. 

Any upcoming conducting opportunities in the next Season will be posted here.

Audition for the Jette Parker Artists

Auditions are held for singers every Season and Stage Directors, Opera and Ballet Conductors and Opera Répétiteurs every second Season. 

The Jette Parker Artists Programme is generously supported by Oak Foundation