impresario

American  

[im-pruh-sahr-ee-oh, -sair-] / ˌɪm prəˈsɑr iˌoʊ, -ˈsɛər- /

noun

plural

impresarios

1. a person who organizes or manages public entertainments, especially operas, ballets, or concerts.

2. any manager, director, or the like.

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impresario British  

/ ˌɪmprəˈsɑːrɪˌəʊ /

noun

1. a producer or sponsor of public entertainments, esp musical or theatrical ones

2. the director or manager of an opera, ballet, or other performing company

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impresario Cultural  

1. A sponsor or producer of entertainment, especially someone who works with opera or ballet companies or performers of classical music.

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Etymology

Origin of impresario

1740–50; < Italian, equivalent to impres ( a ) impresa + -ario -ary

Explanation

An impresario is a promoter: someone who books, promotes, and organizes shows such as concerts. Impresario comes from an Italian word for a businessperson, and in English it especially refers to someone in the promotion business. In the music business, Bill Graham was a famous impresario who arranged concerts for huge bands such as The Rolling Stones and Pink Floyd. An impresario signs a band — or other entertainment — and makes a deal with the venue. Impresarios then arrange advertising and promotion to alert fans and arrange for tickets to be sold. Impresarios make shows happen.

Example Sentences

Earlier, in 1999, Naveen Kishore, theatre impresario and publisher of the Kolkata- based publishers Seagull Books, documented Bhaduri's life in a film and exhibition.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

Henry Pollock, who signed a new representation deal with boxing impresario Eddie Hearn earlier in the week, celebrating Archie McParland's match-winning score with a blizzard of fresh-air jabs was another.

From BBC • Mar. 30, 2026

Later, in England, Little gains fame as the waxwork impresario Madame Tussaud.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 12, 2026

Music impresario Irving Azoff, who booked acts like the Eagles into the Forum, called her “the pioneer of the arena music show,” whose respect for music in buildings built for sports rippled across the industry.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 1, 2026

It had a fur collar and a lining of crimson silk, and had apparently been made for an impresario about as big as an organ-grinder’s monkey.

From "Slaughterhouse-Five" by Kurt Vonnegut