In mid-October 2025, Houston Grand Opera (HGO) selected American conductor James Gaffigan as the fifth music director in the company’s 70-year history. HGO hired Elmore to develop a local and trade media announcement strategy in partnership with their national PR firm.
With a compressed campaign timeline of just two weeks to plan and implement, we were challenged to find unique angles for the local publications — Houston Chronicle, Houston Public Media, and Houston Business Journal — to ensure the complete coverage told the story of Gaffigan’s appointment from different angles.
Elmore successfully secured feature coverage of Gaffigan’s appointment in local and trade publications, elevating HGO’s profile of artistic excellence — the company’s hallmark — and positioning the company as a leader and innovator in the opera world. Stories introduced Gaffigan to Houston audiences, highlighted his resume and talents, and underscored HGO’s commitment to sharing world-class artistic excellence with audiences in Houston and across the globe.
