Press Release

19 November 2014

MEDIA INFORMATION

OPERA NORTH’S WINTER 2015 SEASON

Press Nights at Leeds Grand Theatre

Sat 24 Jan Mozart The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm NEW

Sat 31 Jan Verdi La traviata 7.00pm CAST CHANGE

Wed 18 Feb de Falla / Puccini La vida breve / Gianni Schicchi 7.00pm NEW

Highlights:

· Opera North’s new production of Mozart’s effervescent comedy The Marriage of Figaro is directed by Jo Davies, who returns to the Company following previous productions of Ruddigore and Carousel.

· Christopher Alden revives his blisteringly intense production of La vida breve with French soprano Anne Sophie Duprels as Salud, in a double bill with a new Gianni Schicchi, starring the outstanding British baritone Christopher Purves in the title role.

· La traviata continues after a highly successful run of Alessandro Talevi’s opulent and sensational Belle époque production in Autumn 2014, with new cast members Anna Jeruc-Kopec as Violetta and Stephen Gadd as Germont.

The Marriage of Figaro NEW

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1786)

Sung in English

Mozart's sublime comedy, The Marriage of Figaro, is one of opera's most tender, funny and heart-warming works. From the famous overture which sets the scene for comic misadventures in an opera aptly subtitled 'The Follies of a Day', Mozart's music expresses all the joy and pain of love, along with the agony and ecstasy of desire.

On Figaro's wedding day, he discovers that his master, the Count, is in pursuit of his bride, Susanna. The Countess is heartbroken by her husband's infidelity – but is herself soon the object of the teenage desires of the page boy, Cherubino. To top it all off, Figaro has borrowed money from the housekeeper, and if he can't pay it back, he'll have to marry her instead!

A top international and British cast includes baritone Richard Burkhard as Figaro, whose previous roles at Opera North include Sir Despard Murgatroyd in Ruddigore. Norwegian soprano Silvia Moi sings Susanna, a role she has previously sung in Malm? and at the Komische Oper Berlin. She also appeared as Papagena in Kenneth Branagh’s film version of The Magic Flute.

Quirijn de Lang and Ana Maria Labin are the Count and Countess, while Australian mezzo soprano Helen Sherman sings the 'trouser role' of the page boy Cherubino. Sherman represented Australia in the 2011 Cardiff Singer of the World competition and performed as a soloist with the Orchestra and Chorus of Opera North in the 2014 Tour de France Opening Ceremony in Leeds.

Young British conductor Alexander Shelley, winner of the 2005 Leeds Conductors Competition, returns to Leeds to conduct Mozart's sparkling and ravishing music in this new production directed by Jo Davies. With previous work for Opera North including a deliciously funny Ruddigore and a heartfelt, freshly-minted Carousel, Davies is perfectly placed to balance the effervescent comedy and serious heart of Mozart's masterpiece.

Cast and Production Team:

Figaro Richard Burkhard Conductor Alexander Shelley (ex 14, 26, 28 Mar)

Susanna Silvia Moi Anthony Kraus (14, 26, 28 Mar)

Count Almaviva Quirijn de Lang Director Jo Davies

Countess Almaviva Ana Maria Labin Set Designer Leslie Travers

Cherubino Helen Sherman Costume Designer Gabrielle Dalton

Marcellina Gaynor Keeble Lighting Designer James Farncombe

Don Basilio Joseph Shovelton Choreographer Kay Shepherd

Doctor Bartolo Henry Waddington (ex 11, 17, 21, 27 Feb, 5, 7 Mar)

Dean Robinson (11, 17, 21, 27 Feb, 5, 7 Mar)

Antonio Jeremy Peaker

Barbarina Ellie Laugharne

Don Curzio Nicholas Watts

La traviata CAST CHANGE

Giuseppe Verdi (1853)

Sung in Italian with English titles

Alessandro Talevi's new production of Verdi's great tear-jerker proved an instant hit with audiences in Opera North's Autumn 2014 season, with glamorous costumes and stunning sets evoking the decadence and debauchery of Belle époque Paris. La traviata now returns for an extended run with Polish soprano Anna Jeruc-Kopec taking the role of Violetta, the 'Fallen Woman' of the title.

Violetta is a courtesan to the rich, whose world of wine, song and reckless pleasure is turned upside down when she falls in love with a young nobleman, Alfredo. Unable to suppress her feelings, she gives up her lavish lifestyle in Paris for a simpler life with him in the country. But when her past threatens his family’s honour, she is forced to sacrifice her only chance of real love.

South Korean tenor Ji-Min Park continues to charm audiences as Alfredo, bringing ‘eloquent intensity’ (Opera Now) to the role, while the acclaimed baritone Stephen Gadd joins the cast as Alfredo's father, Germont.

Oliver von Dohnányi, returning to Opera North for the first time since the Company's critically acclaimed production of Norma (2012), conducts a sensational production, brimming with instantly recognisable music, which showcases the strong ensemble talents of the Orchestra and Chorus of Opera North.

Cast and Production Team:

Violetta Valéry Anna Jeruc-Kopec Conductor Oliver von Dohnányi (ex 25, 27 March)

Alfredo Germont Ji-Min Park Justin Doyle (25, 27 March)

Giorgio Germont Stephen Gadd Director Alessandro Talevi

Annina Louise Collett Set & Costume Designer Madeleine Boyd

Flora Bervoix Victoria Sharp Lighting Designer Matthew Haskins

Gastone Daniel Norman Choreographer Victoria Newlyn

Baron Douphol Peter Savidge

Marquis d'Obigny Nicholas Butterfield

Doctor Grenvil Dean Robinson

Double bill: La vida breve REVIVAL

Manuel de Falla (1913)

Sung in Spanish with English titles

Double bill: Gianni Schicchi NEW

Giacomo Puccini (1918)

Sung in Italian with English titles

Two outstanding operas come together to create one extraordinary evening, in a double bill of La vida breve and Gianni Schicchi.

Director Christopher Alden’s ferocious take on Manuel de Falla’s short exuberant opera, La vida breve is an intense, unforgettable experience. An all or nothing tragedy of a woman who loves a worthless man, the atmosphere is heightened by the influence of Andalusian folk song and Spanish dance rhythms.

Originally staged as one of Opera North’s groundbreaking ‘Eight Little Greats’ season of one-act operas in 2004, Alden’s production received extravagant audience and critical praise. It is revived with a new cast including French soprano Anne Sophie Duprels (Cio-Cio San, Madama Butterfly) in the devastating lead role of Salud.

A perfect, light-hearted companion to La vida breve, Gianni Schicchi is Puccini’s only outright comedy, based on an episode in Dante’s Inferno . Puccini’s exquisite music delightfully illustrates the greed and absurdity driving the actions of a dying man’s scheming relatives.

With its vivid characterisation and inventive music, Gianni Schicchi is a comic masterpiece in miniature. Featuring one of Puccini’s best loved arias, ‘O mio babbino caro,’ it is brought alive by a top drawer cast, including one of the current great operatic performers, Christopher Purves, in the title role. Schicchi’s daughter Lauretta is sung by fast-rising young artist Jennifer France, while Spanish tenor Jesús álvarez sings Rinuccio and also takes the role of Paco in La vida breve .

***The double bill of La vida breve and Gianni Schicchi will be recorded live at Leeds Grand Theatre on Wed 25 February, for broadcast on BBC Radio 3 (broadcast date to be confirmed).***

Cast and Production Team:

La vida breve

Salud Anne Sophie Duprels Conductor Jac van Steen (ex 24 Mar)

La abuela Elizabeth Sikora Martin Pickard (24 Mar)

Carmela Beth Mackay Director Christopher Alden

Paco Jesús álvarez Set Designer Johan Engels

Manuel Gavan Ring Costume Designer Sue Willmington

Uncle Salvador Brian Bannatyne-Scott Lighting Designer Adam Silverman

Singer (flamenco) Quirijn de Lang

Off stage voice Daniel Norman

Gianni Schicchi

Gianni Schicchi Christopher Purves Conductor Jac van Steen (ex 24 Mar)

Lauretta Jennifer France Martin Pickard (24 Mar)

Rinuccio Jesús álvarez Director Christopher Alden

Nella Victoria Sharp Set Designer Charles Edwards

La Ciesca Claire Pascoe Costume Designer Doey Lüthi

Zita Elizabeth Sikora Lighting Designer Adam Silverman

Gherardo Daniel Norman

Marco Peter Savidge

Simone Brian Bannatyne-Scott

Ser Amantio di Nicolao Jeremy Peaker

Betto di Signa Dean Robinson

Winter 2015 Performance Diary

Leeds Grand Theatre

Sat 24 Jan 2015 The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

Fri 30 Jan The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

Sat 31 Jan La traviata 7.00pm

Thu 05 Feb The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

Fri 06 Feb La traviata 7.00pm

Wed 11 Feb The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

Sat 14 Feb La traviata 7.00pm

Tue 17 Feb The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

Wed 18 Feb La vida breve /Gianni Schicchi 7.00pm

Thu 19 Feb La traviata 7.00pm

Fri 20 Feb La vida breve /Gianni Schicchi 7.00pm

Sat 21 Feb The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

Wed 25 Feb La vida breve /Gianni Schicchi 7.00pm

Thu 26 Feb La traviata 7.00pm

Fri 27 Feb The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

Sat 28 Feb La vida breve /Gianni Schicchi 7.00pm

Theatre Royal, Newcastle

Tue 03 Mar La vida breve /Gianni Schicchi 7.00pm

Wed 04 Mar La traviata 7.00pm

Thu 05 Mar The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

Fri 06 Mar La traviata 7.00pm

Sat 07 Mar The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

The Lowry, Salford Quays

Tue 10 Mar The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

Wed 11 Mar La traviata 7.00pm

Thu 12 Mar La vida breve /Gianni Schicchi 7.00pm

Fri 13 Mar La traviata 7.00pm

Sat 14 Mar The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

Grand Opera House, Belfast

Wed 18 Mar La traviata 7.15pm

Thu 19 Mar The Marriage of Figaro 7.15pm

Fri 20 Mar La traviata 7.15pm

Sat 21 Mar The Marriage of Figaro 7.15pm

Theatre Royal, Nottingham

Tue 24 Mar La vida breve /Gianni Schicchi 7.00pm

Wed 25 Mar La traviata 7.00pm

Thu 26 Mar The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

Fri 27 Mar La traviata 7.00pm

Sat 28 Mar The Marriage of Figaro 7.00pm

For further information and images, please contact:

Julia Gregg, Press & PR Manager

0113 223 3526

Sian Dudley, Press Officer

0113 223 3528

Molly Fetherston, Communications Assistant

0113 223 3590

www.operanorth.co.uk/press-centre