Shreveport Opera has extended the contract of General and Artistic Director Alan E. Hicks through the 2028-29 season.

Hicks, a stage director, author, academic and former singer,  joined the company in March 2025, succeeding Steve Aiken, who had led Shreveport Opera since 2008 before retiring.

“I believe that we in professional opera have strayed too far from the words to our own detriment,” Hicks said, per an official press release. “The words are the foundation of opera and the score is meant to serve those words. No score was ever written before its libretto. My focus is on young, emerging talent who tell compelling stories. We will not do Regietheater nor will we perform concerts in costumes.”