Ian Derrer Bio

Ian Derrer is a passionate advocate for creating an engaged and curious community around the centuries-old art form of opera. That dedication has served him well as The Dallas Opera’s (TDO) Kern Wildenthal General Director and CEO, a post he has held since 2018.

Derrer annually oversees an average budget of $17.5 million, which supports a season of four mainstage and two family opera productions, the annual Linda and Mitch Hart Institute for Women Conductors, and numerous concert presentations, as well as a robust schedule of education and community engagement activities.

Derrer’s leadership is credited with ushering in an era at The Dallas Opera marked by financial stability; artistic creativity and excellence; diversity and inclusivity in all areas of the company; expanding the opera catalogue with solid fiscal responsibility; and an expanded commitment to engaging the communities of North Texas, all of which is evident in a marked increase in the region’s interest in opera.

Other highlights of Derrer’s tenure at TDO to date include successfully negotiating several new multi-year collective bargaining agreements; renewing the contract of music director Emmanuel Villaume; launching and broadening the company’s digital and streaming offerings; and the recent appointment of Paolo Bressan as Chorus Director and Head of Music.

An enthusiastic fundraiser, Derrer has grown TDO’s annual fund, including raising the largest individual unrestricted gift in the company’s history; secured multi-year production sponsorships; diversified the Board and staff; and overseen efforts to increase both the number of donors, as well as subscribers and individual ticket buyers.

Ian Derrer worked professionally as a singer, stage manager, and assistant director for influential regional and national companies which provided a wealth of experience that eventually led to his first administrative position in 2004 with New York City Opera. Eight years at Lyric Opera of Chicago followed, before he became artistic administrator of The Dallas Opera in 2014—a post he held for two years, before joining the Kentucky Opera, where he served as General Director from 2016-2018.

He holds degrees from Brooklyn College, Northwestern University, and Southern Methodist University.