The San Francisco Opera canceled its 104th season-opening performance of Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra on Saturday and the free annual Opera in the Park concert the following afternoon after the San Francisco Opera Orchestra launched a strike Saturday evening.

As of Sunday evening, orchestra union members said that while bargaining was ongoing, the two sides had not reached an agreement yet.

The labor dispute stems from negotiations to replace the orchestra’s previous contract, which expired on July 31, 2026. The musicians who play in the Opera’s orchestra are members of the American Federation of Musicians Local 6.

According to the musicians, the chief sticking point in these negotiations has been wages. The orchestra musicians said Saturday, the latest offer they’d recieved from the opera was “a five-year wage freeze, which, factoring in inflation, is equivalent to roughly a 20% cut over the life of the contract.” As of Sunday evening, the musicians said they’d been offered a slightly updated proposal from the Opera, which would result in effectively a four-year wage freeze, which, factoring in inflation, would come to a 16% pay cut.

“For our musicians, it’s been very clear that a wage freeze is a cut and one that both we cannot afford for our families to stay here and also for the future of this company, and the integrity, the artistic quality into the future,” said Gabe Young, who plays in the oboe section in the SF Opera Orchestra and is also the chair of the Orchestra’s negotiating committee.

Young noted that the opera musicians are worried about affording rent as the AI boom continues across the city (the most recent report from Zumper indicates that the average rent for a one bedroom in the city is $4,250 a month). He added that many of the musicians in the orchestra have been training their whole lives to do this work and moved to San Francisco specifically to take a job with the Opera.

“We have some of the most talented musicians in the world, and we really fear that this kind of trajectory would be the equivalent of taking a major league ball club and deciding to play in the minors,” Young said.

Musicians said they had been negotiating with the Opera right up until Saturday’s scheduled opening night performance, but ultimately could not reach an agreement. That night, musicians picketed outside the War Memorial Opera House.

On Saturday, San Francisco Opera General Director Matthew Shilvock expressed frustration over the timing of the strike.

“I am very disappointed that the Orchestra has chosen to strike the opening of our 104th season, cancelling the opening performance and the beloved Opera in the Park concert, rather than continuing to engage in dialogue at the negotiating table,” Shilvock said in a statement.

“This is an incredible difficult time for the arts. As with many organizations, we must adjust to the changing realities of the arts, and we cannot sustain a compensation structure that originated 45 years ago without bringing it into alignment with current reality. We deeply value the Musicians of the Orchestra and hope that they will return to the pit as soon as possible, such that the whole company can return to bringing transformative opera to the community.”

The San Francisco Opera has provided details on its website regarding the strike and its financial situation. On its website, the Opera said despite strong sales and donations, “inflationary expense growth has outpaced revenue growth for decades” leading to a $15 million deficit.

The company stated that its current orchestra contract was built for an operational volume that is no longer economically viable. To address this, the company said it “proposed a multi-year contract that phases in structural change at the same time as increasing wage rates, such that the Musicians’ seasonal compensation does not reduce during the term.”

No additional details about the negotiations were provided by the Opera on Sunday.

According to the Opera website, its Orchestra musicians are paid starting at $118,000 a year for a 24-week season, with potential to earn more depending on seniority and title. While the Opera said that the 24-week guarantee “significantly exceeds the volume of work we can economically provide,” the musicians note that even if they are not actively performing in shows, they are still spending a great deal of their time training and practicing their craft to be ready for performances.

The San Francisco Opera is in its 104th season.

The Opera said that no additional performances have been cancelled at this point, however, its website does say that the 2026-2027 season is “on hold due to the Orchestra strike.”

Ticketholders for Saturday’s Simon Boccanegra performance have three options:

Hold the value of their tickets on account to purchase tickets for an upcoming 2026–27 season performance.

Donate the value of their tickets.

Request a full refund.

The Opera said that no immediate action is required. Patrons can visit sfopera.com/updates or call the San Francisco Opera Box Office at 415-864-3330 to select an option.