(Photo: Curtis Brown)

Boston Lyric Opera (BLO) and Boston Conservatory at Berklee have announced an expanded fifth season of their free “Opera Innovators Series.”

The program broadens the participation to include students and young artists from New England Conservatory, Boston University, Longy School of Music, and Boston Singers’ Resource alongside BLO’s Jane & Steven Akin Emerging Artists and Boston Conservatory students. All events take place at BLO’s Opera + Community Studios in Fort Point and are free and open to the public.

Per an official press release, BLO Artistic Director Nina Yoshida Nelsen said the expansion “reflects a belief we hold deeply: when we build relationships between institutions, between emerging artists, and across the broader singing community, we invest in the long-term health of our art form.”

The six masterclass-style sessions will be led by baritone George Gagnidze on Sept. 13; tenor Michael Fabiano on Oct. 14; soprano, director, and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis Artistic Director Patricia Racette on Nov. 1; BLO Music Director David Angus on Feb. 28; tenor Lawrence Brownlee on April 17; and soprano Ailyn Pérez on June 13.

Launched in 2022, the series has previously featured masterclasses with mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton, baritone Norman Garrett, sopranos Christine Goerke, Brenda Rae, and Karen Slack, and conductor Riccardo Frizza, among others.