Five days after the San Francisco Opera Orchestra struck the season-opening performance of Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra, the labor action is over. San Francisco Opera and the San Francisco Opera Orchestra, represented by the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) Local 6, jointly announced on Wednesday night that they had reached a tentative settlement on a new four-year contract. The contract, which must still be ratified by orchestra members in a vote, would run retroactively from Aug. 1, 2026 through July 31, 2030.
General Director Matthew Shilvock said in a statement that the agreement would address structural budget concerns that management brought to the table. After thanking San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, the negotiators, and the mediators, he said, “We look forward to welcoming our talented company members and guest artists, as well as our cherished patrons and donors, back to the theater. Most of all, we look forward to coming together again and reconnecting through the collective beauty of the arts.”
San Francisco Opera Orchestra Associate Principal Oboist and Chair of the Orchestra Negotiating Committee Gabe Young said: "We are heartened to have reached a tentative deal that provides a fair contract and stability for the members of the orchestra. We are grateful to Mayor Lurie and his team, who put in long hours over the past several days to help broker this agreement, and we want to thank the public and Opera patrons for their patience and support through what has been a challenging process for our musicians. We look forward to working together to build on the progress being made at the San Francisco Opera, and we cannot wait to return to the pit to begin this new season and perform once again for the company we love.”
And Mayor Lurie thanked the city’s executive director of arts and culture, Matthew Goudreau and the negotiating teams for their hard work, adding, “Arts and culture are driving San Francisco’s recovery, and the work of the artists and staff at our cultural institutions make that possible.”
With the end of the strike, the company announced the delayed start of the season. Simon Boccanegra will premiere on Sept. 22, with further performances on Sept. 25 and 27. The new production of Thea Musgrave’s Mary, Queen of Scots will open on Sept. 24. This leaves time for rescheduling the dress rehearsal of Musgrave’s opera, which had been cancelled along with the original first performance.
The remaining performances of Mary will proceed as originally scheduled. As the company previously announced, ticket holders to the cancelled performances may exchange their tickets for one of the remaining shows. As always, more information on ticket exchanges may be found by contacting the box office at (415) 864-3330, or via SF Opera’s website.
