The Industry Celebrates 10th Anniversary With THE DECADE PARTY Honoring Founder Yuval Sharon

The Industry will celebrate more than 10 years of groundbreaking and transformational opera works by honoring founder Yuval Sharon at its special celebration, The Decade Party, on Thursday January 30, 2025 at the Bradbury Building in Downtown L.A.

The Decade Party serves to commemorate The Industry’s remarkable journey of more than ten years, beginning with its founding in 2010, and landmark productions Crescent City (2012) and Invisible Cities (2013)—both directed by Sharon and solidifying the organization's practice of presenting opera at different locations throughout the Los Angeles landscape, including Union Station.

As conceived by Sharon, The Industry would not only produce bold, collaborative operatic works, but also open new possibilities for the art form itself. Moving out from the theater and into the world, The Industry would overturn opera’s hierarchies, expand its definition, and create opportunities for voices and narratives historically excluded from the proscenium frame.

With The Decade Party, Sharon will transition from his position as a Co-Artistic Director and assume the title of Founder. Executive Director Tim Griffin will take on an expanded role, serving as both Executive and Artistic Director.

“When I started The Industry in 2010, I never imagined the impact the organization would have in Los Angeles and on the wider field of opera,” said Sharon. “The Industry is, without question, something I will consider a lifetime achievement – one made possible by the enthusiasm and curiosity of L.A.’s uniquely engaged audiences.”

Sharon continues, “It’s now time to pass the torch to the very capable hands of Executive Director and Artistic Director Tim Griffin—there's truly no better person to carry the torch and lead the organization into its next chapter. As Founder, I intend to continue supporting The Industry’s next steps, attending upcoming performances and conceiving future projects unique to The Industry’s identity.”

“Yuval’s artistic vision is extraordinary, with The Industry during his tenure standing at the forefront not only of opera, but also of the arts more generally. His continually groundbreaking work is singular here and around the world,” said Executive Director Tim Griffin. “Everyone is profoundly grateful to Yuval and, moreover, excited to honor his legacy and carry The Industry’s mission forward—pushing the boundaries and potential of opera and its dialogue with all the arts, and growing our deep connection with audiences in Los Angeles and beyond.”

Tim Griffin joined The Industry as Executive Director in July 2023. In a remarkably short period of time, he has significantly expanded individual giving, secured new foundation commitments—including a major grant from the Perenchio Foundation—and laid the foundation for multi-year strategic planning in support of Malik Gaines and Alexandro Segade’s Star Choir at the Mount Wilson Observatory and The Industry's first touring production, The Comet / Poppea. Griffin was previously Executive Director and Chief Curator of The Kitchen, New York (2011–2021), and editor of Artforum (2003–2010).

In 2021, The Industry advanced its mission of offering a platform for multiple voices by expanding its Artistic Directorship from Sharon to include Malik Gaines and Ash Fure, among whose projects have been Gaines’s Star Choir (Mount Wilson Observatory, 2023) and Fure’s Hive Rise (Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, 2021). With The Decade Party, Gaines and Fure will transition to roles on a newly formed Artistic Advisory Council, which will expand The Industry’s creative community, advance dialogues for opera across the arts, and advise Griffin on selecting annual Artists-in-Residence, who will develop programs in the upcoming years. Additionally, this group will advance The Industry’s second LAB—featuring new productions by emerging artists—to be presented in fall/winter 2025/2026.

The Industry presents Ash Fure’s The He(a)rd

In June 2025, The Industry debuts its next site-specific production, The He(a)rd, a boundary-pushing encounter with sound created by sonic artist Ash Fure and architect Xavi Aguirre. Conceived as an underground listening gym, The He(a)rd features full-bodied sonic machines that function like a circuit workout for the senses. Both a total installation and a site for live performance, the project will unfold over three weeks of performances and public programming, set within a massive empty pool underneath The MacArthur in Downtown LA. With 32 channels of immersive sound and a custom participatory listening gym rig, The He(a)rd draws the body-amped intensity of clubs into the world of experimental opera to ask how we might exercise our animal capacity to sense. The He(a)rd is co-produced by Oxy Arts and co-commissioned by Pioneer Works NYC. Tickets will be available in spring 2025.

Preparing for the Next Decade of The Industry: The Decade Fund

The Decade Party will also inaugurate The Industry’s Decade Fund, raising crucial funds to sustain and grow the organization’s commitment to artists—ensuring that the organization may commission major new works, and remain part of the Los Angeles landscape for the decade ahead and beyond. For more information, visit theindustryla.org/decadefund.

The Decade Party

Thursday, January 30, 2024, 7:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m.

at the historic Bradbury Building in Downtown Los Angeles

Friends, collaborators and supporters will come together to celebrate a decade of ground-breaking work from Yuval and The Industry on Thursday, January 30, 2025. The special dinner reception will feature a one-time-only performance highlighting landmark Industry productions, including Invisible Cities (2013) and Hopscotch (2015)—with Hopscotch making a return to the iconic Bradbury Building where one of its scenes was originally staged. For more information, visit theindustryla.org/decadeparty.

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