Opera Australia plunged to another loss in 2023 as box office returns dipped and materials costs soared, with the company resorting to staging more musicals and providing business-to-business services to turn things around.

Australia’s largest performing arts company made an operating loss of $7.8 million in 2023, financial statements lodged this week reveal. That was an improvement from a $9.2 million operating loss in 2022, due in part to staff costs reducing from $70 million to $65 million, following cuts that year to headcount from around 1500 to 1300.