Tomer Zvulun
A Great Sense of Community
The purpose of this project is to provide a collection of transcriptions from the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020. This project seeks to give a platform to all parts of the vocal performing arts to better understand the lived experiences and mentality of those professionals. In collecting stories from the COVID-19 pandemic Tomer Zvulun, the Carl W. Knobloch, Jr. General and Artistic Director of Atlanta Opera, shared the difficult story of Porgy and Bess interrupted. Additionally, he discussed the undertakings of Atlanta Opera to support their community in the pandemic.
Tomer Zvulun, the Carl W. Knobloch, Jr. General and Artistic Director of Atlanta Opera
Interviewed April 27, 2020
TB: I like to start the interview with something positive, so what is the best thing that has happened to you in the last week?
TZ: I spent an amazing amount of time with my two little girls. One is three-and-a-half, almost four, and the other is a year old. We have every meal together and going out for a couple of walks every day. We have a fantastic time together as a family. I also have more time for myself than I have had in years. The weather in Atlanta is gorgeous in the spring, and many great things are happening right now. The world has a lot of suffering and pain, but right here, right now, it is an ideal situation for us as a family.
TB: Would you mind talking a bit about your background and where you are in your career currently?
TZ: I am originally from Israel, but I came to the states almost 20 years ago. I studied in Israel and started my career at the Tel Aviv Opera House. Then, I was a stage director for places like Seattle Opera. Seven years ago, I was offered the position at Atlanta Opera as the General and Artistic Direct and took it. I moved from New York to Atlanta, and it has been incredible. The company has grown tremendously: we doubled our operations budget and tripled our performances. I was also fortunate to attend Harvard Business School and do an executive training program, which really changed my life. Last, I direct a lot of shows and maintain a very active career with that both in Atlanta and elsewhere. But the big part of my life is being a father and a husband.
TB: Can you talk about where you were and how you first realized that the pandemic was going to have a direct effect on you and the Atlanta Opera?
TZ: I think that this situation is very different from other major world events that have happened—like when you think about September 11 or the assassination of the Israeli Prime Minister, for example. One remembers where they were exactly because it happened over a very distinct moment in the life of a nation. The pandemic has been a trickle of different bits of information.
The first time I really paid attention was in January, and I remember it clearly. I dropped my child at school, and one of my messaging groups on WhatsApp is from my time in the Israeli Defense Force, where we exchange news and information. There was a message in Hebrew from an unidentified author that said we were about to witness one of the most fundamental changes to the world that we have ever seen. Remember, this is in January. And they said that the media is not telling the truth and people in China are dropping like flies. It is also recommended that you keep yourself and your family at home for 14 days to ensure you will not have the disease. It sounded so ominous and severe that I immediately texted my friends and asked what this was about because it sounded crazy. Their answer was, "We think it is fake news." I let it go, but I kept thinking, "Can it be true?"
My initial attitude was to consider it very carefully and think about the worst-case scenario. In stoicism, there is a term for that called premeditatio malorum, where you have to think about all the possible bad scenarios so that you are ready to confront them when they happen. So, I followed up carefully and, as weeks followed, it became apparent that this was not fake news.
TB: Could you talk to me about dealing with the cancellations at Atlanta Opera?
TZ: Yes, the reaction was divided into two parts. First, we realized on Friday, March 13, that we had an emergency. After three performances of our very successful production of Porgy and Bess, [we found out] that we would have to cancel the final two sold-out performances, despite the fact, the government and municipality did not forbid gatherings. That morning, I received a few phone calls that were very concerned about the fact that we had a pandemic. So, I took that to our senior management team, and there were a few decisions we had to make then and there. Number one was to cancel or not cancel. We had a sold-out production—that is a substantial financial loss. But the first decision we made was to put our audience, employees, orchestra, chorus, artists, and staff before any financial damages. So, we cancelled the performance. The second decision was whether we use the force majeure principle, which allows the opera not to pay if the performers cannot perform, and it is in every contract. We asked ourselves whether that was the right thing to do when people were there for five weeks, participated in every rehearsal, and were in the middle of a run. The answer was that we should not use force majeure and pay them because that was the right thing to do.
We all gathered that evening [March 13, 2020] with social distancing on stage. I gave each and every member of the cast and chorus their check, and we had a drink. We had cast two Porgys, but one never got to perform; Morris Robinson performed the three prior. So, Musa Ngqungwana performed "Oh Lord, I'm on my way"—it is a very moving company song—as they all went their own ways. That was how we closed Porgy and Bess. On Monday morning, March 15, we closed the office because we decided to care for our staff. This was before the State of Georgia made any decision about a shelter-in-place order.
As time went by, there were another series of responses that we had to make. One mantra kept coming to my mind: the prayer of serenity. It goes, "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things that I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." So when something like this happens, it is not about what happens to you, but how you react that matters. And so, the principles that we employed were making sure that, as much as we can, we take care of people first. With this pandemic, there are so many different impacts on the world that we have no control over, like health or the economy; there is nothing we can do [for that]. We just have to let it play.
But you can help people's state of mind and try to make sure that they channel the mental anxiety into "how can we be productive?" So, we didn't make any cuts in salaries, and we didn't lay off or furlough anyone. We wanted to take the time to figure this out. We had a conversation with the staff, and my request from them in exchange for this was to form a community service task force that will think carefully about [the question], "What does Atlanta need right now that we can provide with our unique skills and expertise?" It is a task force comprising ten junior staff members from every department of the organization. They came up with two major ideas: one was related to physical needs, and the other was spiritual and mental needs.
The first was a simple thought that medical institutions, nurses, and doctors did not have protective equipment. There were no masks or gowns available. We have a major costume shop with personnel and resources to produce anything we would like. So, the first thing we did was mobilized our costume shop and started manufacturing protective masks. They were the masks that went over the N-95 [masks], so we provided those to several hospitals.
The second focus was mental. Part of that was taking care of our staff and making sure that we talked to each other and checked in twice a week. But, there was also a question about how you support the community mentally and spiritually when people are lonely, isolated, and scared? Our answer was to take our studio artists, chorus, and musicians and create telegrams for those in need. These were where a singer would sing a beautiful "You'll Never Walk Alone" or "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" for someone at home and can't see the ones they love. That was the second major initiative that happened.
What happened was that the staff really started to lean on each other. There was a culture that was created [around] putting people first. Ironically (or miraculously), the government came up with the idea that supported our initial instinct: don't let anybody go. They gave forgivable loans that allowed us to keep everybody on staff, and we want to try to do that as long as we can. We don't know what the future brings [or] if we are going to have to use force majeure, but we will do our best to take care of people.
TB: Can you tell me about the reactions that you witnessed from the artists during this major upheaval?
TZ: First there was the initial shock of "Oh my god, we are not performing these last two shows." It was a stunning production with a great sense of community. When you try to create the Catfish Row, people get really close to each other.
So there was great disappointment and shock that they would not be able to perform, which is why we gathered everybody for closure on the stage. We wanted to thank our cast for their amazing work, have a drink with them, and send them home. Everyone was very appreciative of that gesture. But we at Atlanta Opera really do believe in and function on this strong culture [that] while we cannot pay our artists what the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco, or Vienna will pay them, we will try to treat them as well as we can. That was a principle that kept coming back through this situation.
Obviously, you have to weigh that with the fiduciary responsibility for the organization and make sure that you are thoughtful about the way you spend resources. And we are certainly not careless when it comes to that. We always have to think about the impact and damage to the organization [going to be]? And there was significant damage. But I think the goodwill that we got, and are getting, from trying to take care of people is tremendous. One day, we are going to emerge from our caves and lean on our relationships. We'll be able to look into people's eyes and know that we did the right thing.
TB: One of the things you mentioned is the fiduciary responsibility to the company. Can you talk a bit about how you and the board negotiated this issue?
TZ: Yes. Interestingly, at the same time that the opera was cancelled, there was the challenge of expenses. Basically, "Should you pay or should you not pay people?" The other challenge was if we were going to lose ticket revenue or not? Because if we don't perform, people either ask for a refund or donate their ticket.
Immediately following our cancellation, 90% of people asked for a refund and only 10% donated, which is a disaster. I shared that with my board and asked them to consider creating a matching fund that incentivized ticket holders to donate their tickets instead of asking for a refund. My board of directors immediately came through. First, no one opposed the idea of paying the artists. They did not question it and completely understood it. Additionally, they raised $125,000 from the board alone to create a matching fund for those who donated tickets. The trend changed sharply to 60% of people donating their tickets and 40% of tickets being refunded. It was an amazing outcome of generosity and goodwill from so many people.
Now, the financial implications on the field are horrendous. OPERA America published some stats: $50 million in lost revenue and more than 1,000 performances cancelled (for us, there were ten performances cancelled), major ticket sale shortfalls, major hits in contributed revenue, thousand of contracts that were not paid (singers, chorus members, orchestras, etc.), furloughs, pay cuts, etc. In the first weeks, we decided not to panic and buy [ourselves] a bit more time to understand where this was going before we made a decision that we would later regret. Now, I am feeling really bolstered by the fact that the government passed the PPP small business loans that will allow us to keep everybody on payroll until at least the middle of June.
TB: What would you say is the hardest lesson you've learned so far in this situation?
TZ: There are a few, but one of the principles I have always known is that you will never be able to have 100% of the information when you decide. Most of the time, we [only] have 40%-70% of the information, and based on that, we have to decide because if you wait, it will be too late. There is nothing worse than making a decision too late. So that principle was bolstered and justified.
But the main thing this situation affirmed was that crisis reveals character. If you want to know something about an organization or about an individual, a crisis will reveal it. My senior management and I have the power to influence the organization with a set of decisions that will create a particular culture. At the core of our culture is the ethical question, "How do you put people first while making sure that you are doing your fiduciary duty to the company to keep it going as long as possible?" That is it.
TB: In turning to your creative work, how has the pandemic impacted your work moving forward?
TZ: My background is as a director, and I miss watching a performance. I watch dozens if not a hundred performances a year just by being the general director in Atlanta and traveling everywhere to see performances. I am addicted to that, and I haven't seen a performance in seven weeks. I haven't been in a rehearsal room as a director for two months. There is a great sense of loss and mourning.
At the same time, as a human being, I have the opportunity to stop the crazy race that I have with being a father, a husband, running an opera company, or being a boss so that I can stop, reflect, read, think, and lead. All those things require stillness, and we usually have very little stillness. Now, we have more opportunities for that. That allows us to use this time to plan the future and think about what that will look like. That is really exciting because every disequilibrium and every chaos offers an opportunity. One day, we will emerge from this cave, and the world will be different, but we are still around and love what we do. We need the arts more than ever, and so it is going to happen again. It is going to be beautiful.
TB: Can you tell me a bit about how your days were scheduled eight weeks ago and how that has shifted?
TZ: I wake up at 5:00 in the morning and try to read. To keep growing as a human being, I believe that you must read and keep educating yourself—whether it is philosophy, the arts, fiction, or non-fiction. So, I read for a couple of hours while making coffee, then wake up my girls at 7:00 am. I eat breakfast with them and take them to school. Then, I [spend] my day in the office until 5:00 pm. If I have a rehearsal or performance that night, I come home for dinner with the girls and run back to the opera house. Usually, we start at 6:30 or 7:00 pm and go till 10:00 or 11:00 pm.
During my nine-to-five day, I do many things as I am the general and artistic director. They range from fundraising, meeting with the board of directors, meeting with the staff to plan seasons, auditioning, directing, or anything else. It is really about balancing three principles for me: my family, spiritual life and edification, and my work as a general and artistic director. TB: If we didn't have a pandemic, what would you be doing now?
TZ: Right now, we would be in the final rehearsals for Madama Butterfly, which would open on May 2. Today is April 27 and a Monday, which means I would be in the theater right now for tech rehearsals. In addition to my duties as a general director, I was supposed to stage direct Madama Butterfly. But, here I am. I am home, talking to you, and then I am going upstairs to have dinner with my kids. I'll take them on a walk and put them to bed, which will be a wonderful experience. So, I won't be in the theater tonight as I would have been if this didn't happen. But on the other hand, I'm going to talk to my girls and tell them a story, so I don't know if I have reasons to complain.
TB: How do you think that this pandemic will change the way our community works in the future?
TZ: The fact is that we don't know what the industry will look like following this. There are a lot of scenarios that have to do with things beyond our control. We don't know if a vaccine is going to come or about antibody testing. This whole thing is out of our control.
The main thing is that the world will not be the same in that people have a chance to taste stillness and realize how important it is to slow down. That is a good thing, so the business will definitely look different, but it is a business fun of creative people that will figure it out. The only sure thing that we have is the uncertainty of the future. The only constant is change.
TB: What advice would you give to young artists as they are going through this pandemic?
TZ: While you are waiting, there are two things you can do with your time. One is [to] wait for it to be over, and the other is to make use of every minute to prepare for the future. I often think about this delinquent by the name of Malcolm Lee, who was imprisoned for a long time years ago. Instead of waiting for his days when his imprisonment would be over, he studied every book he could read, including the dictionary, multiple times. He educated himself and got out of prison to become Malcolm X. You can choose how to use the time you have right now. I think the best time to start is the present; so, I would advise not just young artists, but everyone at home, to appreciate what we have right now.
We have time. We always say, "We never have time." So study for future roles, work on your languages, study music, watch TV, watch great movies, read great books, read philosophy, read poetry, look at great artwork. You can get to all of these amazing works, so don't waste the time you have. Also, know that there will be a great need for the arts when you do come out of this time. There will be a great need for connection through music that will never stop, regardless of whether we have to have a six-foot distance or not. We are human beings. We need this.
Lastly, there is a great book you may have heard about called The Plague by Albert Camus. It talks about a plague very similar to the one we are experiencing right now, though in 1947. It is like reading a description of what we are going through, although our scale is much bigger. But he said something straightforward that I take with me everywhere, "There is no sun without shadow, and it is essential to know the night." This pandemic is a long night, but we will emerge from it, and the sun will come back. We just have to be ready for what it is going to be like when it does.
TB: Is there anything else that you would like to add to this interview?
TZ: My replies may seem very big-picture philosophical, but there is truth in them that helps guide me. I'm in every decision I make, so being able to read other people's thoughts in similar times throughout history has taught me how their situations can apply to us.
TB: Last question, what are your recommendations for video-watching at this point?
TZ: There is a great TV show called The Crown. I absolutely love it. It is so well done. But the service I am addicted to is called the Criterion Collection. It is a streaming service where you can watch all the great masterpieces. So I try to watch a lot of that and not the news. I am very frustrated with the radical differences and manipulation getting to us. You just don't know who to believe anymore. So, I focus my time and get my news through filters. There are also a lot of great things on Netflix. For Mr. Rogers, there is a documentary about his life and then a movie with Tom Hanks. I would highly recommend those too.
TB: Well, thank you so much for your time and information today. It has been my pleasure.
“Oh Lord, I’m on my way” from Porgy and Bess by Gershwin
Musa Ngqungwana, bass-baritone
About Tomer Zvulun
General and Artistic Director of The Atlanta Opera since 2013, Israeli born Tomer Zvulun is one of the leading stage directors of his generation, earning consistent praise for his creative vision and innovative interpretations. His work has been presented by prestigious opera houses in Europe, South and Central America, Israel and the US. He spent seven seasons on the directing staff at The Metropolitan Opera, where he directed revivals of Carmen and Tosca and was involved with more than a dozen new productions. He is a frequent guest director at companies such as Seattle Opera, The Dallas Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Wexford Festival, Cincinnati Opera, Wolf Trap, and Israeli Opera among others. He directed over 15 new productions at his home company, The Atlanta Opera, and his European premiere of Silent Night at the Wexford Festival received two Irish Times Awards. During Tomer’s tenure, the company’s fundraising has tripled, resulting in twice the number of productions presented annually.
