Richard Bradshaw

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For the Australian puppeteer, see Richard Bradshaw (puppeteer).

Richard James Bradshaw (April 16, 1944 – August 15, 2007) was a British opera conductor and the General Director of the Canadian Opera Company (COC) in Toronto.

Born in Rugby, Warwickshire, England, Bradshaw received an honours Bachelor of Arts degree in English from University of London in 1965. From 1975 to 1977, he was the Chorus Director at the Glyndebourne Festival Opera. From 1977 to 1989, he was Resident Conductor at San Francisco Opera.

In 1988, he was a guest conductor of the COC. In 1989, he was appointed Chief Conductor and Head of Music. In 1994, he was appointed Artistic Director and General Director in 1998. At the COC, he had conducted more than 60 operas.

In 2004, he was made a member of the Order of Ontario for having "brought the COC international acclaim, including a first-ever invitation to the Edinburgh Festival, garnering two prestigious awards".

In 2006, he received the Governor General's Performing Arts Award. It was also that year that saw the opening of the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, a 30-year dream that came to fruition for the Canadian Opera Company and for Bradshaw himself.

On August 15, 2007, Bradshaw died after collapsing from an apparent heart attack while at the Toronto International Airport. He leaves a wife Diana, daughter Jenny, and son James. Bradshaw was 63 years old. His sudden death was a shock to the opera community in Toronto and Canada.