Praised by the Chicago Sun-Times for her “inspired innovation,” stage director E. Loren Meeker has garnered worldwide acclaim for her keen artistic vision and rich, measured storytelling. With an international career spanning engagements across the United States, Argentina, Singapore, and France, Ms. Meeker’s work has been seen at notable houses including Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, Washington National Opera, Teatro Colón, and more. A diverse artist with a background in dance and theatre, Ms. Meeker is especially regarded for her unique, cross-genre perspective which she regularly brings to her work on the operatic stage.
Ms. Meeker’s upcoming season encompasses a number of directorial debuts and new artistic collaborations. Following her debut with Santa Fe Opera directing the Apprentice Scenes Showcase, she makes two more house debuts with Austin Opera directing The Marriage of Figaro and Arizona Opera with a 50th anniversary season finale production of Così fan tutte. Ms. Meeker serves as the General & Artistic Director at OPERA San Antonio, where she finishes the season directing Tomer Zvulun’s production of Rigoletto.
Met with critical acclaim in her most recent productions, Ms. Meeker is regularly praised for her distinctive and illuminating takes on standard repertoire. Of her 2019 production of La bohème with Opera San Antonio, Mike Greenberg of Music Incident Light reported, “It’s an uncommonly lithe staging. This is that rare opera production in which every action of every character is purposeful and natural – not a false note the entire evening. As much as the words and the music, Ms. Meeker’s abundant, intelligently placed details show us who the characters are.”
Recent highlights of her directing engagements include collaborations with Houston Grand Opera (Vinkensport, The Impresario), Portland Opera and Florida Grand Opera with two productions of Madama Butterfly, Washington National Opera (Don Giovanni), Lyric Opera of Chicago (Rigoletto, Die Fledermaus), The Glimmerglass Festival (Show Boat, The Cunning Little Vixen, La bohème), and The Dallas Opera (Show Boat, Manon). Other notable credits include engagements at Houston Grand Opera (Les pêcheurs de perles), Atlanta Opera (Daughter of the Regiment), Wolf Trap Opera (La pietra del paragone), San Francisco Opera (Die Fledermaus), Teatro Colón (Manon) and Singapore Lyric Opera (Manon Lescaut). Equally at home in contemporary repertoire, Ms. Meeker has directed five world premieres for Houston Grand Opera (HGOco) as well as the world premiere of Jason and the Argonauts for Lyric Opera of Chicago (Lyric Unlimited).
Ms. Meeker’s vision and skill as a director has been recognized through a number of recent honors and awards, including two “Best of Opera” awards through the New Orleans Opera Association for her productions of Faust (2017) and Die Fledermaus (2015). Her production of Carmen with Washington National Opera was included in DC Metro Theater Arts’ 2015 “Best of Opera” list. Other notable awards include First Prize (Division IV) of the National Opera Association Opera Production Competition for her production of Lakmè at Rutgers University as well as six “Best Of” ArtsImpluse Theatre Awards nominations for her production of Cendrillon at Boston University Opera Institute.
Ms. Meeker has served on the directing staff for a number of major opera companies across the United States, counting Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, Florida Opera, and more among her early influences. While on staff with Central City Opera, she received the John Moriarty Award for her contributions to the company’s 2006 season. Such opportunities have yielded artistic and collegial ties with many distinguished directors including Sir David McVicar and Francesca Zambello.
As a choreographer, her work has been showcased at Glimmerglass Opera (Orpheus in the Underworld), Houston Grand Opera (Le Nozze di Figaro, Don Giovanni), and Opera Boston (La Vie Parisienne). While in residence with Central City Opera, Ms. Meeker contributed her talents to the Bonfils-Stanton Young Artist Program as the company’s movement teacher and choreographer.
Ms. Meeker’s unique path to directing began with a background in dance and gymnastics, later combining her talents in these disciplines with a love for acting and singing. She received her BFA in Theatre Studies at Boston University and immediately applied her diverse theatrical background to the world of opera. Ms. Meeker is currently based in Boston, Massachusetts.
