MARIEL O’CONNELL
Executive Director
Mariel O'Connell has devoted her career to opera, driven by a deep commitment to the art form and to the artists who bring it to life. Since 2022, she has served as Assistant Director of Opera Activities, Vocal Arts at The Juilliard School, where she works closely with students, faculty, and guest artists—including Stephen Wadsworth, Marcus Shields, Patrick Furrer, Joseph Colaneri, Kevin Newbury, Mary Birnbaum, and others—to ensure that every production receives the care and attention it deserves. Her leadership there reflects a genuine investment in nurturing the next generation of opera performers, connecting students' training to real-world artistic practice.
That devotion has defined her entire career. At Boston Lyric Opera, she brought the same care to the business side of opera, building sales strategies and audience development initiatives designed to help the company thrive during a critical post-pandemic period. As Associate Producer at Beth Morrison Projects, she helped shepherd world premieres and touring productions including the annual PROTOTYPE Festival and two Pulitzer Prize-winning operas, working intimately with performers, creative teams, and companies including LA Opera, San Francisco Opera, the Hong Kong Arts Festival, and Austin Opera to protect the integrity of each artist's vision. She worked with artists such as Missy Mazzoli, Ellen Reid, David T. Little, Daniel Fish, Michael Gordon, Paola Prestini, Nico Muhly, Anthony Roth Costanzo, James Darrah, Kamala Sankaram, and many others. Earlier in her career, she served as Executive Assistant to acclaimed soprano Renée Fleming.
Her academic background—an MBA from NYU Stern and studies in English, Art History, and History at Barnard College—gave her the tools to support artists and institutions with rigor as well as heart. Beyond her professional life, she continues her commitment to the continued growth and education as a Protégé in OPERA America's Mentorship Program for Women Administrators under Melissa Wegner and previously as a 2019 participant in the OPERA America Leadership Intensive.
Mariel is also a board member of the National Opera Center and the Zenith Opera Competition.