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San Francisco Opera is the second largest opera company in North America. Gaetano Merola and Kurt Herbert Adler were the Company’s first two general directors. Merola led the Company from its founding in 1923 until his death in 1953; Adler was in charge from 1953 through 1981. Legendary for both their conducting and managerial skills, the two leaders established a formidable institution that is internationally recognized as one of the top opera companies in the world—heralded for its first-rate productions and roster of international opera stars. Originally presented over two weeks, the Company’s season now contains approximately seventy-five performances of ten operas between September and July. 

David Gockley became San Francisco Opera’s sixth general director in January of 2006 after more than three decades at the helm of Houston Grand Opera. Gockley’s tenure follows the leadership of Terence McEwen, Lotfi Mansouri, and Pamela Rosenberg. Considered one of the major innovators in American opera, Gockley is passionately dedicated to the premise that opera is a living art form that speaks to a variety of audiences. Committed to broadening and diversifying audiences for San Francisco Opera, Gockley presented the Company’s first-ever free live outdoor simulcast, an innovation he pioneered at Houston Grand Opera, during his first months as general director. The May 2006 simulcast of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly drew over 8,000 diverse music lovers and opera newcomers to San Francisco’s Civic Center Plaza. Gockley’s innovative approach was implemented again in October 2006 when San Francisco Opera reached nearly 15,000 people simultaneously in two different venues with a simulcast of Verdi’s Rigoletto to Civic Center Plaza and Stanford University’s Frost Amphitheater.

Under his leadership, San Francisco Opera is currently preparing to present two world premieres. In the fall of 2007, the Company will present Appomattox, commissioned from composer Philip Glass and librettist Christopher Hampton. In the fall of 2008, San Francisco Opera will present the world premiere of composer Stewart Wallace and novelist Amy Tan’s The Bonesetter’s Daughter, based on her best-selling novel of the same name. The Company will also present a new production of Wagner’s Ring Cycle (a co-production with Washington National Opera) starting with Das Rheingold in 2008 and ending with a full presentation of the cycle in the 2010-11 season. San Francisco Opera’s newly appointed artistic adviser Francesca Zambello directs this “American Ring” and Donald Runnicles conducts.
 
Gockley’s partner in artistic programming and musical issues is Music Director and Principal Conductor Donald Runnicles, appointed in 1992. Maestro Runnicles will conclude his tenure in the summer of 2009. During his tenure, Runnicles has championed new repertory ranging from the world premieres of John Adams’s Doctor Atomic (2005) to Conrad Susa’s The Dangerous Liaisons (1994), in addition to the spectacular American stage premiere of Olivier Messiaen’s Saint François d’Assise (2002).    It was announced on 9 January 2007 that Nicola Luisotti will become Music Director of the San Francisco Opera at the start of the 2009-10 season.
 
San Francisco Opera offers a comprehensive array of acclaimed training programs and performance opportunities for young artists under the auspices of the San Francisco Opera Center and the Merola Opera Program (each a separate institution). Both are led by renowned soprano Sheri Greenawald.