New Zealand Opera has appointed Thomas de Mallet Burgess as its General Director.

Burgess joins the company after five years with Perth-based company Lost & Found, whose mission is to present unusual operas in found spaces that speak to the resonance of the work. Throughout the years he has established an international reputation for directing award-winning opera and leading ground-breaking research in opera performer training. He has directed a number of works for the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Canadian Opera Company, Opera Ireland and Wexford Festival Opera.

Burgees will take up the position of General Director on July 16, 2018, and will work alongside the Board to finalize the Company’s existing plans for 2019. He succeeds Stuart Maunder, who will become the Artistic Director of State Opera South Australia.