A Top Tourist Attraction In Otsego County Has A New Leader

Robert Ainsley has been appointed the next artistic and general director of the Glimmerglass Festival.  Ainsley’s resume includes director of the Washington National Opera’s Cafritz Young Artists Program and the American Opera Initiative.

“The staff is really excited to be working with Rob and to help implement his vision,” Brittany Lesavoy, Glimmerglass communications director said in a CNY News interview.

In addition to his work with opera companies, Ainsley is a pianist, administrator and speaker who has performed at the White House, Supreme Court, Smithsonian Museums, National Gallery, Kennedy Center Honors, and Wolf Trap National Park.

“Robert Ainsley is perfectly poised to lead the Glimmerglass Festival into its next era,” Robert Nelson, chair of the Glimmerglass Festival Board of Trustees, said in a statement. “Rob has a deep appreciation and understanding of Glimmerglass, and very much looks forward to becoming a part of the Cooperstown community.”

This summer season will feature six shows beginning with “The Magic Flute” opening July 15th and concluding with “The Passion of Mary Cardwell Dawson” which closes on August 13th. In between there will be “To the World,” “Songbird,” “IL Trovatore,” and “Gods and Mortals.”

Francesca Zambello, the outgoing director, joined Glimmerglass Festival in 2010.  Glimmerglass is a professional non-profit summer opera company located on the shore of Otsego Lake north of Cooperstown.