Leeds Youth Opera is an opera company whose performers are aged 12 to 25, based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The Yorkshire Post described the group as a "national cultural treasure".[1]
Formed in 1971, Leeds Youth Opera (LYO) caters for singers aged 12–25. Since its creation, the company has gained a reputation for performing rare works, as well as the standard operatic repertoire. LYO generally performs two productions each year, as part of the Leeds Civic Arts Guild, which is based at the Carriageworks theatre in central Leeds.
The UK premieres of Satyagraha and The Voyage by Philip Glass were performed by LYO. In July 2008 the group performed the world staged premiere of Oliver Rudland's The Nightingale and the Rose. In July 2009 they performed the European Premier of Appomattox by Glass.
The company's 2006 production of Sondheim's Sweeney Todd was described by the BBC as "excellently performed".[2]