Loretta Tomasi, Chief Executive of English National Opera, is to leave the company at the end of the year after a decade at the London Coliseum-based organisation.
Tomasi, who was named Chief Executive of ENO in 2005 amid a little controversy, when she was promoted to the post without an open procedure, said the decision to leave had been “immensely difficult” to make, but it was “the right time for me to choose a new path.”
She added: “It has been a privilege to lead this amazing and extraordinary company, full of talented, dedicated people who all work so hard to produce the finest work. I am proud of what we have achieved together and I am confident that ENO’s future holds many more artistic triumphs.”
Tomasi joined ENO at a time when the company was in trouble, bringing stability and building partnerships, notably with the Young Vic, with whom the company staged a number of successful productions including The Return Of Ulysses, Elegy For Young Lovers and After Dido.
Martyn Rose, Chair of ENO’s Board of Trustees, commented: “Loretta’s contribution to ENO over the last decade has been immense. She has steered the company through challenging times and enabled it to build a national and international reputation for excellent, highly dramatic opera that makes ENO unique. The Board understands Loretta’s decision to move on, and wishes her the very best of luck in all her future endeavours, but she will be greatly missed.”