About Us
Lyster Opera derives its name from William Saurin Lyster (1828-1880), an Irish born entrepreneur who made it his mission to provide opera to the growing population of Australia. Under Lyster’s auspices, Australians were given their first taste of operatic composers as diverse as Mozart, Donizetti, Auber, Meyerbeer and Wagner. Local stars such as Marie Carandini and Fanny Simonsen brought these works to a new public. Lyster’s extraordinary life and career were documented by Harold Love in his book The Golden Age of Australian Opera (Currency Press, 1981) and today the Melbourne suburb of Lysterfield is named in his honour.
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Past Events
See our artists in action in our gallery of past events
Martha by Friedrich Von Flotow
Performed in various Victorian locations February/March 2024
The Coronation of POPPEA
Performed in various locations throughout Victoria in 2023 May/June
La Cenerentola
Performed in various locations throughout Victoria in 2022-2023
Don Pasquale
Tarnagulla, Oxley, Daylesford, and Abbotsford Convent 2021
L’Elisir d’Amore
Tarnagulla, Beechworth, Oxley, Albury, and Warrnambool 2019
A Celebration of Dame Nellie Melba
Performed in various locations since 2016
"What are we singers but the silver-voiced messengers of the poet and the musician?" - Dame Nellie Melba
Support Us
As an approved Deductible Gift Recipient, donations of $2 or more to Lyster Opera are tax deductible in Australia.
Ticket sales cover only a fraction of our running costs. Your donation could assist us with any of the following:
- Production costs, such as sets and costumes
- Theatre hire
- Sponsorship of artists
- Touring costs, such as travel and accommodation
- Administration and office costs
If you would like to make a donation to Lyster Opera, please email us at info@lysteropera.com.au or via our contact page.