What BOP | Ballet Opéra Pantomime does

BOP (Ballet Opéra Pantomime) is a Montreal-based non-profit performing arts company founded in 2013 that produces multidisciplinary productions blending opera, dance, pantomime, and contemporary circus. Co-founded and co-artistically directed by Eric Thibodeau-Philippe and Pierre-Étienne Bergeron, the company has staged approximately 15 productions over its history and collaborated with more than 500 artists, building recurring co-production partnerships with marquee Quebec institutions including the Opéra de Montréal, Les Violons du Roy, I Musici de Montréal, the Orchestre symphonique de Sherbrooke, and FLIP Fabrique. Signature productions include La Nef (2023), Le Mont Analogue (2024), the planned multi-city tour of Querelle de Roberval (2026), and the announced Atys (2027), alongside the Zéphyr circus co-production (2022) and the community-engagement Basketball Pantomime Circus League (BPCN).

The company operates with a small core team of approximately 5 staff (3 full-time equivalents plus board members) and is funded through a combination of individual donations, corporate sponsorships, public cultural grants (Quebec and federal arts councils implied by donor mix), and ticket sales. Donor tiers range from sub-$1,000 individual gifts to $50,000+ anchor contributions from Power Corporation du Canada, with mid-tier support from Fondation Père Lindsay, Fondation de la Maison symphonique, and other institutional partners. BOP has received multiple Opus prizes from the Conseil québécois de la musique and the Prix de la relève from the Corporation des arts et des lettres du Québec (CMAQ), reflecting critical recognition within the Quebec performing arts ecosystem.

Geographically, BOP's historical base is Montreal with performances at Salle Bourgie, Maison symphonique, and the Chapelle historique du Bon-Pasteur, and it has presented at the Festival d'opéra de Québec. The 2026 Querelle de Roberval tour and the 2027 Atys production signal an intent to expand beyond Montreal into a broader Quebec and Canadian touring footprint. Distribution and audience development occur through established cultural venues, festival partnerships, and co-production arrangements that reduce marginal staging costs and share risk across partner institutions.

Name

BOP | Ballet Opéra Pantomime

Legal name

BOP Ballet Opéra Pantomime

Website

https://bopbop.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

BOP (Ballet Opéra Pantomime) is a Montreal-based non-profit founded in 2013 that produces multidisciplinary opera, dance, pantomime, and circus performances. It collaborates with 500+ artists and Quebec institutions, funding operations through donations, grants, and ticket sales across roughly 15 productions to date.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Montréal

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Private Donations: The company receives donations from individuals and corporations at various tiers ($200+, $1,000+, $10,000+, $25,000+, $50,000+). Notable major donors include Power Corporation du Canada, Fondation Père Lindsay, and anonymous benefactors.
2. Government and Institutional Grants: BOP receives support from arts councils and public funders including the Conseil des arts de Montréal which awarded the Prix de la relève Caisse Desjardins de la Culture in 2019.
3. Ticket Sales: Revenue generated from presenting productions at partner venues and cultural spaces throughout Montreal and Quebec.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

BOP creates and produces multidisciplinary classical and contemporary music spectacles, including operas, dance-music hybrids, circus-music productions, and theatrical works, designed site-specifically for the venues that present them. The company also runs Ballon-panier Centre-Nord (BPCN), a volunteer-run community basketball league serving as a community engagement and revenue diversification program.

Product overview

BOP | Ballet Opéra Pantomime is a Montreal-based performing arts company founded in 2013 that creates and produces multidisciplinary classical and contemporary music spectacles. The company's core offerings are its theatrical productions (operas, dance performances, musical theater) presented in collaboration with artists from theater, dance, and music communities. The portfolio includes 17 major productions spanning Britten operas (Curlew River, The Burning Fiery Furnace), contemporary operas (Nero and The Fall of Lehman Brothers, Atys), dance-theater hybrids (Le Mont Analogue, Quatuor pour la fin du Temps), circus (Zéphyr), and youth-inclusive productions (Conte d'hiver, Le Vaisseau-cœur). Alongside performances, BOP operates Ballon-panier Centre-Nord (BPCN), a community basketball league contributing to organizational revenue diversification. Productions are presented primarily at Montreal venues including Salle Bourgie, Usine C, Théâtre Espace GO, La Chapelle Scènes Contemporaines, and Arsenal art contemporain, with touring to other Quebec venues.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Curlew River BOP's inaugural production: a staging of Benjamin Britten's Curlew River featuring young North American singers, presented at the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal with imagery evoking medieval stained glass.
• Images de Sappho A danced production featuring Luna Pearl Woolf's 'Orpheus on Sappho's Shore' with choreography by Emmanuelle Lussier-Martinez, including Esa-Pekka Salonen's Five Images after Sappho (Canadian premiere). Co-produced with ECM+.
• The Burning Fiery Furnace The second of Benjamin Britten's church parables, presented for the first time in Montreal in nearly fifty years and staged by Marc Béland at Salle Bourgie.
• Le Vin herbé A multidisciplinary spectacle integrating and paraphrasing Frank Martin's oratorio Le Vin herbé, reuniting nearly sixty artists including actors, singers, and instrumentalists at Arsenal art contemporain. Winner of the 2016 Opus Prize for Discovery of the Year.
• Quatuor pour la fin du Temps A performance revisiting Olivier Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time, confronting the mystical spiritual universe with contemporary dancers including Karina Champoux, Dave St-Pierre, Frédéric Tavernini, and Anne Thériault.
• J'aurais voulu être un Gougoune A musical fairy tale featuring naive and sophisticated music with lively theatrical performance about Sorcerer Gougoune's journey to help others, presented at Camp musical Père Lindsay.
• Nero and The Fall of Lehman Brothers An opera by composer Jonathan Dawe depicting the 2008 financial crisis through Baroque opera codes, using ancient figures of Nero, Seneca, Agrippina, and Poppea, presented at Salle Guillet.
• Le Vaisseau-cœur A multidisciplinary production transposing Francis Poulenc's Litanies à la Vierge noire and Olivier Messiaen's Trois Petites Liturgies de la Présence Divine, featuring young singers from Joseph-François-Perrault secondary school. Presented at Salle Bourgie.
• Please Thrill Me A contemporary performance featuring punk musicians Sean Nicholas Savage and Cadence Weapon, exploring themes of friendship and fraternity. Premiered at La Chapelle Scènes Contemporaines.
• Riders to the Sea / Le Flambeau de la nuit A double opera program pairing Ralph Vaughan Williams' Riders to the Sea with BOP's original creation Le Flambeau de la nuit, produced in collaboration with Orchestre de chambre I Musici de Montréal and Opéra de Montréal at Théâtre Maisonneuve.
• Zéphyr BOP's first incursion into circus arts, co-produced with FLIP Fabrique and Les Violons du Roy, featuring a collage of French Baroque instrumental pieces. Premiered at Palais Montcalm. Winner of the 2022 Opus Prize for Concert Baroque of the Year.
• La Nef A ritual for bodies and light inspired by Olivier Messiaen's piano works, performed in a circular arena with four pianists surrounding a black monolith. Premiered at Usine C and toured to Orford Musique.
• Le Mont Analogue A multidisciplinary performance inspired by René Daumal's novel, involving artists from theater, music, and dance exploring themes of infinity and the universal. Co-produced with LFDT Lo Fi Dance Theory. Premiered at Théâtre Espace GO.
• Conte d'hiver A theatrical production blending theater and music, created in collaboration with primary school students from École Le Plateau who participated in all aspects of production including set design and sound engineering. Premiered at La Chapelle Scènes Contemporaines.
• Ballon-panier Centre-Nord (BPCN) A recreational, mixed, and intergenerational basketball league run by BOP volunteers, with three divisions (Est, Ouest, and Conventicule féminin), bringing together approximately 100 players and hosting nearly 400 matches annually. Contributes to community engagement and revenue diversification for the organization.

Quantifiable outcome

• Award-winning productions recognized by Opus Awards and the Conseil des arts de Montréal

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

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Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Opéra de MontréalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2027Co-production of Atys (2027), Jonathan Dawe's reimagining of Lully's opera in 1980s American political context.
• Les Boréades de MontréalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2027Co-production of Atys (2027), bringing baroque music expertise to the contemporary reimagining.
• UBU compagnie de créationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2027Co-production of Atys (2027), collaborating on the contemporary creation.
• Théâtre du TridentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Lead co-producer of Querelle de Roberval (2026), based on Kev Lambert's novel, to be presented in Quebec City.
• Théâtre français du CNAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Co-producer of Querelle de Roberval (2026), presenting in Ottawa.
• Festival TransAmériquescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Co-producer of Querelle de Roberval (2026), presenting in Montreal as part of the festival.
• Théâtre du Double signeminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Co-producer of Querelle de Roberval (2026), presenting in Sherbrooke.
• Théâtre du TandemminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Co-producer of Querelle de Roberval (2026), presenting in Val-d'Or.
• Théâtre La RubriqueminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Co-producer of Querelle de Roberval (2026), presenting in Jonquière.
• LFDT Lo Fi Dance TheorycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Co-production of Le Mont Analogue (2024), a multidisciplinary production inspired by René Daumal's work.
• ESPACE GOcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Collaboration partner for Le Mont Analogue (2024), presented at Théâtre Espace GO.
• Usine CcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Primary venue for La Nef (2023), Cedric Delorme-Bouchard's production inspired by Olivier Messiaen's piano works.
• Orford MusiqueminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Touring venue for La Nef (2023), presenting the production in July 2023.
• Les Violons du RoycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Co-production partnership for Zéphyr (2022), BOP's first incursion into circus arts, combining baroque French repertoire with circus performance. Les Violons du Roy provided orchestral direction under Hubert Tanguay-Labrosse.
• FLIP FabriquecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Co-production partnership for Zéphyr (2022), bringing circus expertise to the multidisciplinary production combining baroque music and circus arts.
• Opéra de MontréalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Partnership for Riders to the Sea / Le Flambeau de la nuit (2021), combining BOP's production with the Opéra de Montréal's resources and audience.
• Orchestre de chambre I Musici de MontréalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Collaboration for Riders to the Sea / Le Flambeau de la nuit (2021), providing orchestral accompaniment for the double program.
• ECM+ (Ensemble de musique contemporaine de Montréal)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015Co-production of Images de Sappho (2015), BOP's first realization in the dance component of its mission.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Opéra de Montréal: Montreal's principal opera company and a recurring BOP co-production partner (Riders to the Sea / Le Flambeau de la nuit 2021; Atys 2027). Comparably focused on opera production in the Montreal market with overlapping donor and audience pools.
• Compagnie Marie Chouinard: Montreal-based dance company with comparable multidisciplinary performances blending dance, music, and visual elements. Comparable scale and Quebec-based contemporary performing arts positioning.
• I Musici de Montréal: Montreal chamber orchestra and a BOP co-production partner (Riders to the Sea / Le Flambeau de la nuit, 2021). Comparable as a Montreal-based classical music ensemble collaborating on opera and concert productions.
• Théâtre du Quat'Sous: Long-established Montreal experimental theater company. Comparable as a Montreal producing theater competing for the same Quebec arts council funding and corporate donor base.
• FLIP Fabrique: Quebec City circus company and a BOP co-production partner (Zéphyr, 2022). Comparable in producing multidisciplinary performance work with Quebec institutional backing.
• Ex Machina (Robert Lepage): Quebec City-based multidisciplinary theater company under Robert Lepage producing opera-adjacent and cross-genre works. Comparable in fusing opera, theater, music, and visual art with Quebec institutional partnerships.
• Les Violons du Roy: Quebec City/Montreal baroque orchestra and a BOP co-production partner (Zéphyr, 2022). Comparable in Montreal-based classical/baroque music production with shared donor networks.
• Usine C: Montreal center for contemporary dance and performance and a BOP venue partner (La Nef, 2023). Comparable in presenting multidisciplinary contemporary performance work in Montreal.
• Festival TransAmériques: Montreal's major contemporary performing arts festival and a BOP co-production partner for Querelle de Roberval (2026). Comparable in curating multidisciplinary contemporary performance work for Montreal audiences.
• Théâtre Espace GO: Montreal theater company and a BOP venue partner (Le Mont Analogue, 2024). Comparable as a Montreal producing theater with overlapping multidisciplinary programming.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCb-yDWWUU6uWyK6OMxj9ypg
• Facebookfacebook.com/BalletOperaPantomime
• Instagraminstagram.com/balletoperapantomime
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bop-ballet-op-ra-pantomime

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about BOP | Ballet Opéra Pantomime