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Occupational Training for Professions of Performing Arts

CFA on-the-job training for skilled professions within the Opera and Orchestra

The Centre for Apprentice Training (CFA) for professions in the field of the performing arts was instrumental in developing the professional training activities of the Lorraine National Opera. The centre is a public institution which, in conjunction with a higher education cursus, offers vocational training in the skilled professions at the opera and orchestra as well as in the performing arts in general.

The professional diploma for communications and the promotion of artistic creativity

In partnership with the University of Lorraine, the CFA offers a general training programme combined with practical training in the form of an apprenticeship or a professional training contract. The CFA complements the training received in the workplace. This professional diploma fully meets the challenges of entering the workforce in the skilled trades which underpin the performing arts.
Depending on an individual’s career path, the apprentice follows one of two professional diploma courses:

1. The course for Opera-related professions, which offers training for one of the four positions below:
- Stage manager
- Orchestra manager
- Production manager
- Music librarian

2. Or the course for interfacing and liaising with audiences and partners in the performing arts, which includes the following positions:
- Public relations officer
- Educational projects manager
- Cultural activities officer

Since 2008, when the CFA was created, over 180 young people have graduated from the CFA with diplomas from the University of Lorraine. In addition, over 70 employers from all across France have worked with conviction alongside us to provide practical training for the students: the Dijon Opera, Radio France, the Paris Opera, the French Republican Guard, the Lille National Orchestra, the Lyon National Orchestra, the Limoges Opera, the Lyon Opera, and the National Orchestra of the Pays de la Loire… Since 2018, the CFA has offered a mobility programme for young trainees which allows them to pursue some or all of their practical training abroad during or after their year-long apprenticeship.

Since June 2020, the CFA has been the beneficiary of co-financing from the European Union’s Erasmus+ programme, in the framework of the “Europe on Scene” project for graduate apprentices.

Educational partner: UFR “Arts, Letters and Languages” of the University of Lorraine

Further information

Lisa WERTS, CFA Director
03 83 85 33 20
E-mail: cfa@opera-national-lorraine.fr
Website: www.cfa-operaorchestre.fr
Social media: Facebook, Instagram, YouTube

With the support of

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