We may not have elected a woman president in 2016, but after a 113-year run of presenting operas by men, New York’s Metropolitan Opera finally went with a work composed by a woman: Kaija Saariaho’s “L’Amour de Loin” (“Love From Afar”) was not only a triumph for the 64-year old Finn last December, but it also marked the Met debut of Finnish conductor Susanna Mälkki, only the fourth woman to grace the podium in that company’s storied history."
On this coast, however, things are looking a tad more female-centric in the world of what some people call the highest art form. This isn’t to say that women will soon be calling all the shots, but that they are certainly becoming more visible. Indeed, as recently as February, an excerpt of “Balls,” an opera based on the historic “Battle of the Sexes” tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs, was featured in “First Take,” the biennial workshop co-produced by the cutting edge L.A. opera company, The Industry, and the contemporary music ensemble, wild Up.