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ENO music director Mark Wigglesworth quits ENO music director Mark Wigglesworth quits
(35 minutes later)
English National Opera has been thrown into fresh turmoil after its respected music director Mark Wigglesworth unexpectedly resigned because the company was “evolving into something I do not recognise”.English National Opera has been thrown into fresh turmoil after its respected music director Mark Wigglesworth unexpectedly resigned because the company was “evolving into something I do not recognise”.
The conductor announced he would step down at the end of the current season.The conductor announced he would step down at the end of the current season.
A spokeswoman said: “He will continue to honour his contractual commitments as a conductor and looks forward to continuing to work with the wonderful musicians of ENO.”A spokeswoman said: “He will continue to honour his contractual commitments as a conductor and looks forward to continuing to work with the wonderful musicians of ENO.”
She added that Wigglesworth would not be commenting further at this time.She added that Wigglesworth would not be commenting further at this time.
But in a resignation letter to musicians, seen by the Guardian, Wigglesworth made plain his disillusionment at the direction that ENO was taking: “The company is evolving now into something I do not recognise, and as hard as I have tried to argue to maintain what I believe to be the fundamental pillars of our identity, I have failed to persuade others of this necessity.”But in a resignation letter to musicians, seen by the Guardian, Wigglesworth made plain his disillusionment at the direction that ENO was taking: “The company is evolving now into something I do not recognise, and as hard as I have tried to argue to maintain what I believe to be the fundamental pillars of our identity, I have failed to persuade others of this necessity.”
The resignation comes only four days after it looked as if ENO was starting to put its many troubles behind it. Wigglesworth, 51, has only been in the post since September 2015, succeeding Edward Gardner. Previously he has conducted at the Royal Opera House, New York’s Metropolitan Opera and Glyndebourne.
The company has lurched from crisis to crisis after the resignation of its chairman and a senior director in December 2014. The threat of a strike by its chorus, threatened with a pay cut of at least 25%, was only narrowly averted last week. The conductor has found himself with the beleaguered company during a time of huge funding cuts and great turbulence. ENO has lurched from crisis to crisis after the resignation of its chairman and a senior director in December 2014.
At the heart of its present troubles is the need to spend less money after Arts Council England cut its annual grant by 29%, or £5m a year.At the heart of its present troubles is the need to spend less money after Arts Council England cut its annual grant by 29%, or £5m a year.
Cressida Pollock, the former McKinsey consultant who is now ENO’s chief executive, has come up with a new business model which will, in the short term at least, see fewer productions at the company’s home, the London Coliseum. Yet, the resignation comes only four days after it looked as if ENO was starting to put its many troubles behind it. The threat of a strike by its chorus, threatened with a pay cut of at least 25%, was only narrowly averted last week.
It has had strong artistic successes on the stage, including record box-office figures for a recent production of Philip Glass’s Akhnaten, which is the company’s most successful contemporary opera to date, playing to a 96% occupancy.
Cressida Pollock, the former McKinsey consultant who is now ENO’s chief executive of the company, has come up with a new business model which will, in the short term at least, see fewer productions at the company’s home, the London Coliseum.
That Wigglesworth was unhappy was no secret. As ENO’s management negotiated with the chorus’s union Equity over new contracts, Wigglesworth wrote a piece for the Guardian in which he argued that irreparable damage would be caused by cutting the core of the company.That Wigglesworth was unhappy was no secret. As ENO’s management negotiated with the chorus’s union Equity over new contracts, Wigglesworth wrote a piece for the Guardian in which he argued that irreparable damage would be caused by cutting the core of the company.
He wrote: “I believe a fresh approach will fail if it compromises the company’s experience and expertise. Without the commitment, sense of ownership, love, and pride of the people who are the essence of ENO artistically, we have no right to ask for any curiosity, loyalty, or passion from our audience. ENO’s identity as a team defines its past and will be its greatest asset in protecting its future.”He wrote: “I believe a fresh approach will fail if it compromises the company’s experience and expertise. Without the commitment, sense of ownership, love, and pride of the people who are the essence of ENO artistically, we have no right to ask for any curiosity, loyalty, or passion from our audience. ENO’s identity as a team defines its past and will be its greatest asset in protecting its future.”