One of Musical America’s Top 30 Innovators in Classical Music, Josh Shaw is the Founding Artistic Director of Pacific Opera Project (POP), which has been described as “L.A.’s most exciting new opera company.” Over the past eleven seasons, Mr. Shaw has directed over 50 productions at POP, including The Rake’s Progress, Ariadne auf Naxos, La Calisto, Tosca: A Moving Production; and La Bohéme: AKA “The Hipsters”. A frequent librettist for English updates, his Star Trek inspired Abduction from the Seraglio and Nintendo inspired Magic Flute AKA #SuperFlute have gained national attention and have been produced at multiple companies, shattering attendance records.
Mr. Shaw has directed over 90 productions at companies including Opera Santa Barbara, New Orleans Opera, Opera Orlando, Gulfshore Opera, Intermountain Opera, Salt Marsh Opera, and Opera Neo. Mr. Shaw’s Il barbiere di Siviglia at Opera Santa Barbara was described as “riotously funny” and “thoroughly amusing from overture to final bow.” His work as a director has been described as “Brave and unflinching,” “Ingenious,” “Relentlessly and adorably rambunctious,” “with enough good comic ideas for at least three productions.” As a producer, he has been praised for his “supreme savvy” and “high level of production quality” with “the power to enthrall and captivate audiences.”
Recent projects include a new setting of Die Fledermaus, a ground-breaking production of Iolanta starring “The Blind Soprano” Cristina Jones, and a Japanese/English setting of Madama Butterfly. One of the busiest directors during Covid, Mr. Shaw directed twelve productions during the pandemic including a drive-in Don Pasquale for Opera Santa Barbara and an updated Cosi – “Covid fan tutte” set in 2020. Other recent projects include productions of Don Giovanni, La Gazzetta, La Traviata, Guillaume Tell, The Mikado, and Tabasco: A Burlesque Opera. More at joshshaw.org