Pocket Opera
Pocket Opera Company is a Nürnberg-based nonprofit chamber-opera ensemble founded in 1974, producing reduced-orchestration opera and music-theater in unconventional venues such as laundromats, buses, and churches for regional and festival audiences.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1974
- HeadquartersNürnberg, Germany
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Pocket Opera does
Pocket Opera Company (POC), legally Opernstudio Nürnberg e.V., is a Nürnberg-based nonprofit chamber-opera ensemble founded in 1974 and recognized as Germany's oldest free music theater company. Its core product is a portfolio of live opera and music-theater productions — totaling more than 100 staged works since inception — distinguished by a signature "Pocket Opera" format that adapts classical and baroque repertoire (notably Wagner, Gluck, Handel, Mozart, and contemporary commissions) to reduced ensembles, most often a saxophone quartet, and stages them in unconventional venues such as laundromats (SB-Waschsalon), public buses, churches, cemeteries, power plants, and marshalling yards. The flagship franchise, "Wash House Adventure," a staging of Wagner's Der Fliegende Holländer in a real laundromat launched in November 2012, has become a regional cult production running for 12+ consecutive years and drawing more than 8,000 cumulative spectators.
The company monetizes primarily through single-ticket sales (€12-€22 per ticket with student/disabled/Nürnberg-Pass reductions), a recurring supporting-membership program (Fördermitgliedschaft) with discounted priority tickets and seat reservations, gift vouchers, and a back-catalog merchandise line of DVDs (€15-€20) and CDs (€10-€15). Distribution runs through direct phone/email/messaging-app reservations, Kulturinformation Nürnberg (online via KunstKulturQuartier webshop and offline at Königstraße 93), Eventim-Light for select productions, and partner-specific channels such as Reservix and Freundeskreis Christoph Willibald Gluck e.V. Marketing relies on a multi-channel mix spanning the company website, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Mastodon, messaging-app newsletters, earned regional press (Nürnberger Nachrichten, Nürnberger Zeitung), and community word-of-mouth.
The organization is funded by a blend of ticket and merchandise revenue, supporting-member contributions, and public grants from Freistaat Bayern, Stadt Nürnberg, and Bezirk Mittelfranken, alongside private sponsors. Artistic leadership has rested with Franz Killer since August 2007 (musical direction since 2003), with co-founder Peter Beat Wyrsch continuing as First Chairman. The ensemble operates as a member-based association under a 1-10-employee structure, tours regionally within Germany and occasionally internationally (including a 2003 New York guest performance), and co-founded the European Chamber Opera Pool (E.C.O.P.).
Pocket Opera firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Pocket Opera
- Legal name
- Opernstudio Nürnberg e.V.
- Website
- https://pocket-opera.de
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1974
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Pocket Opera Company is a Nürnberg-based nonprofit chamber-opera ensemble founded in 1974, producing reduced-orchestration opera and music-theater in unconventional venues such as laundromats, buses, and churches for regional and festival audiences.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Pocket Opera industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Performing Arts - Opera and Music Theater
- NAICS
- Performing Arts Companies (7111), Musical Groups and Artists (71113), Other Performing Arts Companies (711190)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Musical Theatre (Non-Broadway/Fringe) (MPAGABAG)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Live Music Clubs & Venues (MPAGAIAB)
Keywords
Where Pocket Opera is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Nürnberg
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
Pocket Opera business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Performance Tickets: The primary revenue stream comes from ticket sales for live opera performances at various venues and the annual calendar of productions including Wash House series, Landpartie in Berching, and special productions.
- Merchandise Sales: Sales of DVDs and CDs of past productions, including recordings of Wash House Adventure, Le Voyage Magique, Tannhäuser Projekt, and other notable productions.
- Membership/Fördermitgliedschaft: Supporting membership program with benefits including discounted priority tickets, seat reservations, and free program publications.
- Gift Vouchers: Sale of value vouchers for future performances as gifts.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Standard tickets for 'L'ombra dell'amore' at Nuremberg Petersfriedhof |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Standard tickets for 'Wash House' productions |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Historic Wash House Adventure tickets (2012-2014) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | DVD and CD merchandise |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Book: 'Die Pocket Opera Company – Oper am Puls der Zeit' |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels9 records
Pocket Opera product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Pocket Opera Company produces live chamber-scale opera and music theater performances, primarily in the Nuremberg area and at festivals across Germany and Europe. It is best known for staging classical and contemporary opera in unconventional venues such as laundromats, buses, cemeteries, churches, and industrial spaces, using reduced orchestral arrangements (typically saxophone quartet) that adapt major works to non-traditional settings. Its commercial offerings include recurring production series, recorded media (DVDs/CDs), a supporting membership program, gift vouchers, and a published company history book.
Product overview
Pocket Opera Company is Germany's oldest free music theater ensemble (founded 1974), offering live opera and music theater performances primarily in the Nuremberg area. The core product consists of innovative opera productions, often featuring unconventional venue settings (laundromats, power plants, cemeteries, churches) and creative reinterpretations of classical works. Signature productions include the long-running "Wash House Adventure" series (Wagner's Flying Dutchman in a laundromat since 2012), Gluck opera revivals, baroque opera performances, and contemporary music theater. The company operates as a multi-product portfolio offering: (1) Live performance productions across multiple genres and historical periods, (2) Recorded media products (DVDs/CDs) of past productions, (3) Supporting membership programs, (4) Newsletter subscription services, and (5) Ticket sales and gift vouchers. All products are distributed through the company's own channels and third-party ticketing partners.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Wash House Adventure / Wash House Thunderbolt (annual Wagner Flying Dutchman in laundromat series)
- L'ombra dell'amore – Orfeo ed Euridice
- Sax on the Beach
- POC DVD/Video Recordings
- POC CD/Audio Recordings
- POC Fördermitgliedschaft (Supporting Membership)
- Ticket-Gutscheine (Gift Vouchers)
- Anniversary Book – "Die Pocket Opera Company – Oper am Puls der Zeit"
Quantifiable outcome
- Wash House series achieved cult status with 8,000+ cumulative audience members and sold-out performances for over 12 consecutive years
Companies that use Pocket Opera
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Pocket Opera technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Pocket Opera partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Motetten-Chor NürnbergcoreRegular collaboration since 2011 with the Motetten-Chor Nürnberg, which provides chorus performances for productions including the Wash House series.
- Die 12 SaxophonistencoreSaxophone ensemble that frequently provides musical accompaniment for POC productions, including Wash House series.
- Kulturinformation NürnbergcoreOfficial ticket sales partner for POC performances, offering offline sales at Königstraße 93 and online ticketing through KunstKulturQuartier webshop.
- Freundeskreis Christoph Willibald Gluck e.V.minorPartnership for annual 'Landpartie' productions in Berching (Gluck-Stadt), presenting opera performances at various historic locations.
- Stadttheater FürthminorTheater cooperation for performances and artistic collaborations.
- Theater im Pfalzbau LudwigshafenminorCooperation partner for performances and artistic collaborations.
- Rossini Festival WildbadminorFestival partnership for opera performances.
- E.C.O.P. (European Chamber Opera Pool)minorPOC is co-founder of European Chamber Opera Pool with seat in Ghent, supporting small-scale opera movement across Europe.
- Bayerischer RundfunkminorBroadcast partnership for recordings and radio productions.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Pocket Opera competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Komische Oper Berlin: Berlin's three-splay house known for innovative, contemporary stagings of opera and music theatre in a chamber-scale, accessible register. Directly comparable to POC in its emphasis on non-traditional interpretations, smaller forces, and audience-development programming.
- Stadttheater Fürth: Regional German theater with a music-theater program and ongoing artistic cooperation with POC. Comparable in size, regional positioning, and repertoire mix that blends classical opera with contemporary works.
- Theater im Pfalzbau Ludwigshafen: Mid-size German theater hosting opera, music theater and dance with an active programming of contemporary and chamber-scale works. Already a documented cooperation partner of POC, sharing comparable audience scale and artistic ambition.
- Kammeroper München: Munich-based chamber opera company producing small-scale opera and music theater with contemporary stagings. Directly comparable to POC in artistic ambition, audience size, and reduced-orchestration model.
- European Chamber Opera Pool (E.C.O.P.): European network of small-scale opera companies co-founded by POC, headquartered in Ghent. Most direct peer in terms of mission, scale, and chamber-opera ideology, and a vehicle through which POC's model could expand across Europe.
- Rossini Festival Wildbad: Annual festival in Bad Wildbad specializing in rarely performed Italian opera in chamber scale. Already a partner venue for POC; comparable in repertoire focus (rare baroque/classical opera), reduced orchestration and festival-based distribution model.
Regional players
- Nürnberger Symphoniker: Regional orchestra based in Nürnberg serving as a cultural anchor in the same city as POC. Not a direct opera competitor but shares the regional audience pool and public funding ecosystem.
Broad incumbents
- Theater Basel: Larger Swiss-German opera house with a music-theater department known for contemporary stagings. Comparable in repertoire breadth but operates at materially larger scale than POC and serves as a regional incumbent.
- Opernhaus Zürich: Major Swiss opera house with an active contemporary programming agenda. Useful peer for understanding how larger institutions balance traditional repertoire with new commissions and reduced-orchestration works.
- Bayerische Staatsoper: Munich's flagship opera house and one of the world's leading opera institutions. Provides a regional incumbent benchmark for opera programming in Bavaria, against which POC differentiates with chamber-scale and site-specific work.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Pocket Opera social profiles
Digital presencePocket Opera financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Pocket Opera leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Pocket Opera funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Pocket Opera M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Pocket Opera
What does Pocket Opera do?
Pocket Opera Company produces live chamber-scale opera and music theater performances, primarily in the Nuremberg area and at festivals across Germany and Europe. It is best known for staging classical and contemporary opera in unconventional venues such as laundromats, buses, cemeteries, churches, and industrial spaces, using reduced orchestral arrangements (typically saxophone quartet) that adapt major works to non-traditional settings. Its commercial offerings include recurring production series, recorded media (DVDs/CDs), a supporting membership program, gift vouchers, and a published company history book.
Is Pocket Opera a public or private company?
Pocket Opera is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Pocket Opera founded?
Pocket Opera was founded in 1974. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Pocket Opera based?
Pocket Opera is headquartered in Nürnberg, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does Pocket Opera make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Performance Tickets are the primary driver. The others are merchandise Sales, membership/Fördermitgliedschaft and gift Vouchers.
Who are Pocket Opera's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Komische Oper Berlin, Stadttheater Fürth, Theater im Pfalzbau Ludwigshafen, Kammeroper München, European Chamber Opera Pool (E.C.O.P.) and Rossini Festival Wildbad. Nürnberger Symphoniker is listed as a regional player. Broad incumbents are Theater Basel, Opernhaus Zürich and Bayerische Staatsoper.
Does Pocket Opera have an API?
No public API is recorded for Pocket Opera.
What industry is Pocket Opera in?
Pocket Opera's product category is Performing Arts - Opera and Music Theater. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAGABAG, Musical Theatre (Non-Broadway/Fringe), with a secondary code of MPAGAIAB, Live Music Clubs & Venues. Its NAICS code is 7111.