THOMAS ADÈS
POWDER HER FACE
POWDER HER FACE
OPERA IN TWO ACTS BY THOMAS ADÈS.
Libretto by Philip Hensher. First performed at the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham on 1 July 1995. Irish première. A co-production between Northern Ireland Opera and Opera Theatre Company. Performed by arrangement with Faber Music Ltd, London. Running time approx. 2 hours 20 minutes (including interval).
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Chairman’s Welcome On behalf of Northern Ireland Opera I am delighted to welcome you to the Irish première of Powder Her Face by Thomas Adès. We are excited to be collaborating with Dublin-based Opera Theatre Company on this production, and look forward to bringing this show to audiences in the Republic of Ireland in 2018. We welcome British soprano Mary Plazas making her Northern Ireland Opera debut as the infamous Duchess, as well as tenor Adrian Dwyer, soprano Daire Halpin and bass Stephen Richardson who are returning to work with the company once again. We are also delighted to welcome back director/designer Antony McDonald, and conductor Nicholas Chalmers, who has played such an important role in the company’s success since 2011. Powder Her Face is the last production overseen by our current Artistic Director Oliver Mears, before his move to the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Our production of Don Giovanni last November was a fitting send-off for Oliver, playing to a sold-out Grand Opera House and receiving unanimous acclaim from critics and the public alike. We wish him all the very best for what will no doubt be a very bright future in London. But the show must go on as they say, and after a recruitment process attracting applications from across the globe, we are thrilled to have appointed Walter Sutcliffe as the new Artistic Director of Northern Ireland Opera. Walter brings with him extensive experience of directing critically-acclaimed opera and theatre productions throughout Europe and further afield, as well as a keen insight into what it takes to lead a successful opera company, and we believe he is the perfect person to lead Northern Ireland Opera on the next stage of its journey, continuing the wonderful work the company has achieved thus far. The company’s 2016/17 season continues with a concert performance of La Bohème with the Ulster Orchestra at the end of April, closely followed by the Irish première of Handel’s Radamisto, with the Irish Chamber Orchestra, generously supported by the Arts Council of Ireland, which will tour the island in May. I would like to thank our principal funder, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, for their continued support, enabling us to provide the highest quality opera throughout Northern Ireland and beyond. The four members of our Young Artists Programme continue to receive expert training and support, with recent highlights including understudying roles in our production of Don Giovanni, masterclasses with song expert Iain Burnside, and just a few weeks ago they appeared at the Out to Lunch Festival, performing music along the themes of love, lust and loss to a sold-out Black Box Theatre in Belfast. We are proud to offer these fantastic opportunities to young singers, and applications for the 2017/18 programme open this Spring. This is a very exciting time for Northern Ireland Opera, and we look forward to what the rest of 2017 has in store. I would like to thank you, our valued audience, for your continued support for the company, and hope you enjoy this evening’s performance.
Roy Bailie Chairman Northern Ireland Opera
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Artistic Director’s Notes
The world is infatuated with scandal. In an age of clickbait news and the endless exhibitionism of social media, there seems no limit to our appetite for the peccadilloes and failings of other people – and even better, when those people fall from a great height, or if their fall contains a sexual dimension. Perhaps this partly accounts for the huge popular success of Thomas Adès’s opera Powder Her Face – written in 1995, it is one of the few contemporary operas to have had hit productions and TV adaptations all over the world. And while it is also the first opera to specify an act of fellatio in its stage directions, it certainly is not the first to feature scandal as its main theme. The central character in Powder Her Face, Margaret Wigham, was born in 1912 to a wealthy family and brought up mainly in the United States. After a series of illicit early affairs, including one with David Niven at the age of 15 – a liaison which led to a hurried termination – she finally married a wealthy American amateur golfer in the 1930s. Falling down a lift shaft on a visit to her chiropodist during the war, 4
permanent nerve damage affected her sense of sight and smell and, it is alleged, led to an even more voracious sexual appetite. In 1951 she married the Duke of Argyll before embarking on further affairs (her husband cited at least 88 men in the 1960s divorce proceedings) including the notorious 1963 scandal which featured nude polaroid photos of Margaret with a ‘headless man’ – the details of which can be imagined. Living in a hotel from 1978, she was finally forced to move into a care home due to unpaid bills, where she died after another fall in 1993. When the 24 year old Thomas Adès set the Duchess’s somewhat chequered life story to music, he was writing in a rich tradition. Opera, invariably written by men until the twentieth century (and mainly so since then), made a fetish of women whose disruptive sexuality both titillated their audience and thrilled them with the whiff of a dangerous challenge to the social order – though inevitably this challenge is contained by the more or less horrific deaths plotted for them. These women sometimes glory in the power that their sexuality confers on them – Carmen, Lulu, Manon – or feel ashamed of it: Dido and Lucretia are famous examples. Others are more ambiguous – Violetta in La Traviata
(perhaps the most popular opera ever written) is a ‘courtesan’ who both revels in her status as the go-to call-girl of beau monde Paris and seems to yearn for a more authentic intimacy. Salome is another case again: a woman who uses her body to destroy the man who spurns her, her sadistic act of violence against John the Baptist an understandable fightback against the relentless masculine gaze she has experienced and its familiar corollary – abuse and murder. What is thrilling about Adès’s opera, however, is not only its story but its musical material. Ever since World War II, modern opera has often been a victim of the growing disconnect between the music of the people and the music which progressive composers have felt expected to write. Ever since Stravinsky and Schoenberg, to write in a popular idiom was often considered to be dumbing down: so in place of the fire of Verdi and Wagner, what became respected was often the academic, the obscure, and the worthy – often as the themes of these operas became more reflective, more abstract. Despite this, it has been the modern operas which draw on popular or folk forms as well as modernism (Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, Porgy and Bess, Bluebeard’s Castle, Peter Grimes), which feature compelling stories at
their heart, that have best stood the test of time – and Powder Her Face is a classic recent example in this tradition. Adès’s score is a witty, cruel, but always breathtakingly imaginative modern masterpiece precisely because it mines so many of the best musical traditions of the twentieth century and yet still achieves a musical world completely of its own. Like those other masterpieces, it also contains an extraordinary central character transgressive of her era. Adès’ score is therefore that rare beast: a contemporary opera that has lived well beyond its first performances. Marrying musical wit and incomparable directness to a story which is not only ‘scandalous’ but also deeply moving, Powder Her Face proves that modern opera can be sexy, that it can be ‘Now’ – while sitting in a proud line of music theatre pieces that are truly that: both music and theatre. For that is when opera is at its exciting best. Oliver Mears Artistic Director Northern Ireland Opera
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Composer
Thomas Adès Born in London in 1971, Thomas Adès studied piano at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, and read music at King’s College, Cambridge. A prodigious composer, conductor and pianist, Adès was described by the New York Times as one of today’s ‘most accomplished overall musicians.’ Adès’s first opera, Powder Her Face (1995) has been performed worldwide whilst his second, The Tempest, was commissioned by London’s Royal Opera House and was premiered under the baton of the composer to great critical acclaim in 2004. It was revived in 2007 and has since had several performances elsewhere, including the Metropolitan Opera New York where it was recorded for a Deutsche Grammophon DVD which subsequently won a Grammy Award. Adès’s third opera, after Luis Buñuel’s The Exterminating Angel, premiered at the Salzburg Festival in July 2016. Adès’s many musical advocates include Sir Simon Rattle who performed Asyla (1997) at his final concert with the CBSO and his first as Music Director of the Berlin Philharmonic, and Tevot with the Berlin Philharmonic in 2007. In 2011 the orchestral work Polaris was premiered by the New World Symphony and Michael Tilson Thomas in Miami and has since been choreographed by Crystal Pite. Adès’s Totentanz for mezzo-soprano, baritone and large orchestra was premiered at the 2013 Proms by the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Adès has won numerous awards, including the 2015 Léonie Sonning Music Prize and the prestigious Grawemeyer Award (2000), of which he is the youngest ever recipient. Adès was Artistic Director of the Aldeburgh Festival from 1999 to 2008 and coaches piano and chamber music annually at the International Musicians Seminar, Prussia Cove.
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Synopsis Scene 1 1990
Scene 5 1953
The Duchess surprises a Maid and an Electrician in the act of ridiculing her in her suite on the top floor of a leading hotel in London’s West End. Owing to their negligence, Her Grace’s coat is soiled. As she changes, all three express unanimous admiration for Her Grace’s clothes and scent, and varying opinions about Her Grace’s circumstances. An entrance ensues.
Meanwhile, His Grace entertains a friend at home after returning from a party. Her Grace is discussed and information revealed.
Scene 2 1934 The Duke is expected at a large country house. Former ‘Debutante of the Year’ Mrs Freeling awaits him eagerly as her divorce is discussed by a Confidante and a Lounge Lizard. His Grace’s recent affairs are a topic. A song is given and His Grace arrives.
Scene 3 1936 Fashionable interest in Mrs Freeling’s wedding to His Grace is in no way affected by her status as a famous divorcee, a magnificent reception is thrown. Behind the scenes, a thoughtful Waitress prepares elaborate dishes.
Scene 4 1953 On one of her frequent visits to the capital, Her Grace relaxes in her room in one of London’s foremost hotels. She telephones for Room Service and gives the Waiter the friendly welcome which has earned her such popularity among the staff.
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Scene 6 1955 As the historic divorce trial nears its close and the Judge’s concluding remarks are awaited, Rubberneckers discuss the sensational aspect by which they have been attracted. A judgement is given and Her Grace reacts.
Scene 7 1970 Her Grace grants an interview at her lovely home. She offers insights from her experience of health, beauty, entertaining, millinery and English society.
Scene 8 1990 Her Grace receives two visits from the Manager of the prestigious London hotel which has been her home for over a decade. They finalise details of her forthcoming departure, and in the interim, she reflects. She vacates the suite, which is then made ready for the next occupant.
ACIS & GALATEA
HANDEL
NATIONAL TOUR
25 MARCH - 13 APRIL 2017 WITH THE IRISH BAROQUE ORCHESTRA
OPENS
NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE WEXFORD
TOURING WATERGATE THEATRE KILKENNY SIAMSA TÍRE TRALEE THEATRE ROYAL WATERFORD PAVILION THEATRE DÚN LAOGHAIRE LIME TREE THEATRE LIMERICK AN TÁIN DUNDALK O’REILLY THEATRE DUBLIN SOLSTICE ARTS CENTRE NAVAN OPERA.IE
Cast Duchess Mary Plazas Electrician Adrian Dwyer Hotel Manager Stephen Richardson Maid Daire Halpin
Creative Team Conductor Nicholas Chalmers Director / Designer Antony McDonald Choreographer Lucy Burge Lighting Designer Fabiana Piccioli RĂŠpĂŠtiteur / Assistant Conductor Tim Anderson Assistant Director Danielle Urbas Musical Assistant Eoghan Desmond
Production Team Production Manager Patrick McLaughlin Stage Manager Sarah Taylor Kent Deputy Stage Manager Megan Magill Costume Supervisor Ilona Karas Wardrobe Mistress Melanie Carmichael Wigs & Make-up Supervisor Carole Dunne Costume Makers Melanie Carmichael Jackie Hallatt Roxy Cressy Pauline Cheney Janet Spriggs Wigs Supplier Campbell Young Props Maker Laura Nelson Technical Manager Nic Rée Stage Carpenters Steve Anderson Pete Boyle Production Electrician Hallam Knight Stage Electrician Alan Clarke Set Construction Bower Wood Prompt Side Upholstery Christopher Gawliczek Quilting Sophie Wallace Roslyn Davidson Transport Trevor Price Philip Goss
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Acknowledgements Arts Council of Northern Ireland Bag of Bees Design Belfast City Council Boosey & Hawkes Charlotte Tilbury Ciara Timoney Clodagh Stitt Dr. Clíona Doris, DIT Faber Music Ltd Grand Opera House House of Fraser Jimmy Fay and the staff at the Lyric Theatre Laurence Roberts from City Resorts Patrick Redmond Piers Hellawell Pixel Design Rachel Clarke Richard McBride Richard Wigley Ryan Harty Sarah Ainslie Sean Rafferty Simon Hutchinson Stagecrew Stag’s Head Ulster Orchestra
The Arts
Bringing people and communities together
Accolade Choir in Newry, supported through the Arts Council’s Intercultural Arts Programme
www.artscouncil-ni.org
/ArtsCouncilNI
@ArtsCouncilNI
Ulster Orchestra 1st Violin Tamás Kocsis
Horn Jesse Durkan
2nd Violin Thomas Jackson
Trumpet David Collins
Viola William Goodwin
Trombone Martin Wilson
Double Bass William Cole
Percussion Brian Dungan
Cello David Edmonds
Harp Dianne Marshall
Clarinets and Saxophones Gareth Brady Paul Schumann Macdara Ó Seireadáin
Accordion Rafał Łuc
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Piano Clive Williamson
ODE TO JOY! CHORAL CLASSICS TO UPLIFT AND INSPIRE
Join the Ulster Orchestra, Belfast Philharmonic Choir and a host of internationally acclaimed soloists for two stunning evenings of music.
FAURÉ REQUIEM AT EASTER FRIDAY 14 APRIL 2017, 7.45pm Ulster Hall £10 - £28 Poulenc’s transcendant Stabat mater, his ‘prayer of intercession’ and Fauré’s masterpiece, his serene Requiem, will come together in a Good Friday concert that speaks straight to the heart.
ODE TO JOY – CELEBRATING 50 SEASONS! SATURDAY 20 MAY 2017, 7.45pm Belfast Waterfront £20 - £37.50 The Ulster Orchestra’s year of celebration reaches a joyous climax under the baton of Music Director Rafael Payare in a performance of Beethoven’s never-bettered Ninth Symphony, the Choral. In this spectacular evening, expect excitement, noise and, above all, joy!
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Biographies TIM ANDERSON
LUCY BURGE
Répétiteur & Assistant Conductor
Choreographer
Tim Anderson studied at New College, Oxford, where he held the Joan Conway Scholarship in performance studies as a conductor and an instrumental scholarship as a pianist. After graduating in 2013, he was invited by the late Gerard Mortier to join the music staff of the Teatro Real, Madrid, where he worked as a répétiteur and assistant conductor for the 2013-14 season, and conducted a run of Harsányi’s L’histoire du petit tailleur on the main stage. After returning to the UK, Tim completed the ENO répétiteur traineeship, before being invited to play for Glyndebourne’s production of Handel’s Saul, directed by Barrie Kosky and conducted by Ivor Bolton. Tim now works regularly for Glyndebourne Festival and Tour as a répétiteur and assistant conductor. Recent guest engagements include Don Giovanni with Pablo Gonzalez for the Glyndebourne Tour, Rusalka with Till Drömann at Oper Stuttgart, and Rossini’s L’italiana in Algeri with David Parry for Garsington Opera. Future engagements include Brett Dean’s Hamlet conducted by Vladimir Jurowski at the 2017 Glyndebourne Festival, a new opera by Zesses Seglias based on Virginia Wolf’s ‘To the Lighthouse’ for the Bregenz Festival 2017, and Tosca with David Parry and the Netherlands Touring Opera.
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Lucy was a principal dancer with Ballet Rambert between 1970-85. During this time Lucy performed as a guest artist with Rudolf Nureyev. She has danced for all major British opera companies. Her work as a Choreographer includes, for Richard Jones, La fanciulla del West (Santa Fe Opera / ENO) and Die Meistersinger von Nürnburg (ENO), Billy Budd (Frankfurt / Gothenburg / Amsterdam), The Makropoulos Case (Frankfurt), Ariodante (Canada National Opera / Aix-en-Provence, Dutch National Opera), Les Contes d’Hoffmann (ENO / Bayerische Staatsoper) and Lohengrin (Bayerische Staatsoper), Gloriana (Royal Opera / Hamburg) and L’Heure espagnole / Gianni Schicchi (Royal Opera); for director Antony McDonald, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Hyogo Arts, Japan), Rusalka (Scottish Opera), Manon and Der Ring des Nibelungen (Nationale Reisopera), Fiddler on the Roof, Rusalka and The Queen of Spades (all Grange Park Opera), The Importance of Being Earnest (Northern Ireland Opera) and L’Enfant et les Sortileges (Bolshoi Opera); for Daniel Kramer, Carmen (Opera North / De Vlaamse Opera); for Sam Brown, My Fair Lady (Staatstheater Karlsruhe), La Favorite (Graz); for Katharina Thoma, Ariodante auf Naxos (Glyndebourne festival); and for Adele Thomas, Oresteia (Globe Theatre).
NICHOLAS CHALMERS
ADRIAN DWYER
Conductor
Electrician
Nicholas is the artistic director and conductor of the award-winning Nevill Holt Opera, artistic director of Second Movement Opera Company and conductor with Northern Ireland Opera. Nicholas was the first person to conduct a Benjamin Britten opera in China with Noye’s Fludde in Beijing (2012). He studied music at Oxford University and conducting at the Piacenza and Milan Conservatoires. Nicholas works extensively in Europe and Asia with recent engagements including Messiah (Opéra National de Lyon), The Turn of the Screw (Zurich Opera) and Noye’s Fludde (China Philharmonic). For Second Movement he has conducted Mozart and Salieri (October 2004), Trouble in Tahiti (June 2005), The Medium and Impresario (January 2006), Les Deux Aveugles, Rothschild’s Violin and The Knife’s Tears (May 2007). Conducting engagements with Northern Ireland Opera include The Medium (Feb 2011), Tosca (Best Opera - Irish Times Theatre Awards April 2011), The Turn of the Screw (March 2012 and Buxton Festival July 2012, March 2016), Noye’s Fludde (Belfast Zoo - August 2012, Beijing October 2012 and Shanghai July 2013), The Flying Dutchman (February 2013), The Bear (March 2013), Macbeth (February 2014), The Magic Flute (September 2014), Salome (February 2015) and Don Giovanni (November 2016). With Nevill Holt Opera: The Magic Flute (June 2013), La Bohème and The Turn of the Screw (July 2014), Carmen (June 2015), Rigoletto and The Elixir of Love (June 2016). Nicholas works regularly with the Ulster Orchestra and the BBC Singers.
Born in Melbourne, Adrian Dwyer studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the National Opera Studio, London. He made his professional debut as Rodolfo in Baz Luhrmann’s La Bohème in Los Angeles, winning an LA Stage Alliance Award for Outstanding Performance. Since then his roles have included Bénédict Béatrice et Bénédict (Opéra Comique, Paris), Macduff Macbeth and Almaviva Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Scottish Opera), Andres Wozzeck, Jaquino Fidelio, Janek The Makropoulos Case, Trin La Fanciulla del West, Arturo Lucia di Lammermoor, Grailknight Parsifal and SS Officer in Weinberg’s The Passenger (English National Opera), Miroslav/Harpist Excursions of Mr Broucek, Robert Skin Deep and Janek The Makropoulos Case (Opera North), Don Ottavio Don Giovanni and Giuseppe La Wally (Opera Holland Park and Belle Ile Festival France), Hermes King Priam and Inkslinger/Narrator Paul Bunyan (English Touring Opera), Julien Louise (Buxton Festival), Aubry Der Vampyr (Cork Summer Festival), Alfredo La Traviata and Almaviva Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Opera Queensland), Narraboth Salome and Steersman The Flying Dutchman (Northern Ireland Opera), Rodolfo La Bohème (Cape Town Opera, Royal Albert Hall), Sam Kaplan Street Scene (Opéra de Toulon) and Ismaele Nabucco (State Opera of South Australia). Recent and future highlights include his Welsh National Opera debut, Lemminkainen Swanhunter for Opera North, Florestan Fidelio for Longborough Festival Opera, Linfea La Calisto for English Touring Opera, and Trabuco La forza del destino and Flavio Norma for English National Opera.
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Biographies DAIRE HALPIN
ANTONY MCDONALD
Maid
Director / Designer
Daire Halpin’s operatic engagements include world premières: Elizabeth I/Sophia/ Lucia Heresy – Roger Doyle (Meta Productions), Julia The Duchess of Malfi – Torsten Rasch (English National Opera), Hilde The Lady from the Sea – Craig Armstrong (Scottish Opera), and Hulda The Alma Fetish – Raymond Deane (Wide Open Opera). Other operatic roles include Apollo Il Parnaso Confuso, Zerlina Don Giovanni, Diana Orpheus in the Underworld, Lucy Lockitt The Beggar’s Opera, Belinda Dido and Aeneas, Adina L’Elisir d’Amore, Susanna Le Nozze di Figaro, Despina Così fan Tutte, Pamina/Papagena Die Zauberflöte, Galatea Acis and Galatea, Theodora (Title Role), Tigrane Radamisto, Musetta La Bohème, Tytania A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Gabrielle La Vie Parisienne. Concert engagements have included solo appearances with the European Union Youth Orchestra in London and Reykjavik, and numerous appearances with the RTÉ orchestras. She recently premiered Across the Water by David Wallace – a piece she commissioned with harpist Jean Kelly which tells the story of four generations of Irish immigrants in London and Byzantium - Nico Muhly with Thomas Bartlett for Yeats 2015. Recordings include Lyric fm’s No. 1 bestselling Joyce Songs, BBC Radio 4’s adaptation of Joyce’s Ulysses; and Lucy Lockitt for the European Opera Centre / Royal Liverpool Philharmonic.
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Antony is a Royal Designer for Industry. He is a member of the British Team of Designers who won the Golden Triga at the 2003 Prague Quadrennale for Un Ballo in Maschera, Bregenz, and in 1991 for the 1989 RSC Hamlet starring Mark Rylance. Winner of Set Design Award for Opera, International Opera Awards 2013. Opera Direction and Design includes: A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Hyogo Performing Arts Centre, Japan), Rusalka (Scottish Opera), Tristan und Isolde (Opéra National du Rhin), Lohengrin (Welsh National Opera / Polish National Opera/ Greek National Opera), The Importance of Being Earnest (Northern Ireland Opera), L’Enfant et les Sortilèges (Bolshoi, Moscow), The Ring Cycle, Manon, King Priam (Nationale Reisopera Holland), Fiddler on the Roof, Wonderful Town, Rusalka, Queen of Spades, (Grange Park Opera), Maria Stuarda (Opera North), The Knot Garden, Aida, Samson and Dalilah (Scottish Opera). Design Includes: Macbeth (Theater St Gallen), La Finta Giardinera (Glyndebourne), Ein Reigen (Vienna State Ballet), Makropolus Case (Frankfurt Opera), Billy Budd (Frankfurt Opera / The Netherlands Opera / Gothenburg Opera), The Gambler (Royal Opera), Alice, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Nutcracker (Scottish Ballet). Theatre includes: The Bakkhai, Venice Preserved, Mrs Gauguin, Hadda Gabler (Almeida Theatre), Lives of the Great Poisoners (Second Stride), Insignificance, Tom and Viv (Royal Court) and As You Like It (Old Vic).
FABIANA PICCIOLI
MARY PLAZAS
Lighting Designer
Duchess
Fabiana joined Akram Khan Company as Technical Director and Lighting Designer in 2005, touring with the company worldwide. Since 2013 she has collaborated with many international artists and choreographers as Lighting Designer. Working at present on a range of different scale projects including dance, theatre, concerts and opera. Winner of the 2013 Knight of Illumination Award for Dance for iTMOI (Sadler’s Wells). Previous productions include: Under Siege (Yang Liping, Sadler’s Wells), Le Nozze di Figaro (Teatro alla Scala), Kokoro (Lali Ayguade, Romaeuropa Festival), Interrupted (Aditi Mangaldas Dance Company, Dehli), Natalia Osipova (Sadler’s Wells & EIF, Chor: Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui), Rigoletto (Nevill Holt Opera), Ophelias Zimmer (Royal Court), Ravel Mixed Bill (Royal Ballet Flanders), Verklärte Nacht (Rambert, Sadler’s Wells & Festival Theatre Edinburgh), The Pursuit of Now choreographed by Akram Khan (Sadler’s Wells), V (Joss Arnott Dance), The Bayadere - The Ninth Life choreographed by Shobana Jeysingh (Royal Opera House), Rainy Days Festival (Philharmonic Orchestra Luxembourg), Go Down, Moses directed by Romeo Castellucci (Théâtre de la Ville, Paris), We/Part (Rome Ballet), Breathe (Errol White Company), Romeo and Juliet (Rose Theatre, Kingston), Inked (Askash Odedra), Pests (Clean Break), Dust, Medea (ENB), iTMOI (Akram Khan Company), One Side to the Other (Exhibition by Akram Khan, The Lowry Galleries), Within, Immersed, Timeless and Now Is (Aditi Mangaldas Dance Company), Race Race, choreographed by Paolo Mangiola (Teatro Vascello Rome), Pirates (Improbable productions), Confluence, Beautiful and Beautiful Me and Svapnagata Festival (Sadler’s Wells).
Mary Plazas studied at the RNCM (where she was awarded the Curtis Gold medal) and the National Opera Studio and was winner of the 1991 Kathleen Ferrier Memorial Scholarship. A former company principal for ENO, roles have included CioCio San, Nedda, Mimi, Fiordiligi, Donna Elvira, Michaela, Leila, Adina, Lauretta, Oscar and the Cunning Little Vixen. Other appearances include Italian Singer Capriccio (Royal Opera House), Angelic Voice Palestrina (ROH London/ New York), Mimi (Opera North, Bregenz Festival, West Australian Opera), Anne Trulove (Bavarian State Opera, New Israeli Opera), Donna Elvira (Glyndebourne on Tour/Valladolid Opera), Susanna, Salud Vida Breve, Elisetta Il Matrimonio Segreto (Opera North), Lucrezia Borgia, Elisabetta Roberto Devereux, Maria di Rohan (Buxton Festival), Mrs Coyle Owen Wingrave (Concertgebouw) and Cio-Cio San for Perth International Festival. She created two roles in operas for Jonathan Dove, Tina Flight (Glyndebourne) and Blue Fairy Pinocchio (Opera North) also premiering Dove’s There Was A Child (Norwich Festival/ Philharmonia). She sang the World première of Gerald Barry’s Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (National Orchestra of Ireland), performed the title role in Peter Eotvos’s Lady Sarashina (Opéra National de Lyon/Opéra Comique) and the Duchess in Adès Powder Her Face (Aldeburgh/Almeida/ Channel 4, LSO at the Barbican). She has given many recitals and concerts including those given with conductors Sir Mark Elder, Sakari Oramo, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Andre Previn, Kent Nagano, Mark Wigglesworth, Richard Hickox and David Parry. She has recorded for Opera Rara, Deutsche Grammophon and Sony. For Chandos records the roles of Maguerite Faust, Adina, Zerlina, Liu and Michaela. 21
Biographies STEPHEN RICHARDSON
DANIELLE URBAS
Hotel Manager
Assistant Director
Stephen Richardson studied at the Royal Northern College of Music. He has created roles in many contemporary works including Adès’ The Tempest (ROH); Tan Dun’s Orchestral Theatre II‚ Re‚ and Tea (Suntory Hall‚ Tokyo); Barry’s The Triumph of Beauty and Deceit‚ The Importance of Being Earnest and The Intelligence Park; Tavener’s Eis Thanaton‚ Resurrection‚ The Apocalypse and Fall and Resurrection (City of London Sinfonia); and the British premiere of The Handmaid’s Tale (ENO). Current engagements include Baron Ochs Der Rosankavalier (Bolshoi‚ Moscow and Opera North)‚ King of Hearts in Unsuk Chin’s Alice in Wonderland (Los Angeles Philharmonic and The Barbican)‚ Dansker Billy Budd (Opera North)‚ Bartolo (Garsington) and Rocco Fidelio (Bridgewater Hall and Philharmonie de Paris).
Danielle trained as an actor at the Drama Centre London. Her acting credits include productions for stage, TV and film. She has worked with Northern Ireland Opera on many previous productions and most recently assisted Oliver Mears on Don Giovanni (2016). She has also previously assisted Director / Designer Antony McDonald, the latest production being Fiddler on the Roof for Grange Park Opera, starring Bryn Terfel (2015). She also assisted Antony on Tristan and Isolde for Opéra National du Rhin (2015) and The Importance of Being Earnest (Northern Ireland Opera and Wide Open Opera, 2013).
Recent engagements include Hobson Peter Grimes (La Scala‚ ROH‚ Opera North and Aldeburgh)‚ Geronte di Ravoir Manon Lescaut (WNO and Savonlinna Festival)‚ Sarastro‚ Rocco (Garsington and Winterthur Festival)‚ Frank Die Fledermaus (Korean National Opera)‚ Micha The Bartered Bride‚ Commandant From The House of The Dead and The Adventures of Pinocchio (Opera North)‚ Ferrando Il Trovatore (Den Jyske Opera).
Her assisting credits include: with Oliver Mears on the following productions – with Second Movement: The Three Wishes (Tête à Tête, 2010), The Knife’s Tears (Brno and Prague, 2010). With Northern Ireland Opera: The Medium (2010), Orpheus in the Underworld (Scottish Opera and Northern Ireland Opera 2011), The Turn of the Screw (2012) which she also revived for Novaya Opera in Moscow (2014), The Flying Dutchman (2013), Macbeth (2014), Salome (2015) and Don Giovanni (2016). Other assisting credits include: Ashley Page on La Bohème for Nevill Holt Opera (2014) and Daniel Slater on Fortunio for Grange Park Opera (2013).
Concerts include Birtwistle’s The Second Mrs Kong (Royal Festival Hall)‚ Messiah (Carnegie Hall)‚ Oedipus Rex (BBC Stravinsky Festival)‚ Nixon in China (London Symphony Orchestra), Knussen’s Where the Wild Things Are and Higglety Pigglety Pop! (Cleveland Orchestra and London Sinfonietta).
In 2012 Danielle made her directorial debut with Zatopek!, a short opera as part of the New Music Festival 20x12 (Epstein Theatre, Liverpool and The Southbank Centre, London) and most recently directed Awa’s Journey in collaboration with Union Dance Company in the Arcola Theatre.
For Northern Ireland Opera: Timur Turandot, Daland The Flying Dutchman and Lady Bracknell The Importance of Being Earnest. 22
BOARD
There’s a real buzz and sense of purpose about what this company is doing” – The Guardian Northern Ireland Opera was formed in 2010, with a mission to provide the highest quality opera to the widest possible audience, and to promote young Northern Irish talent. Generously supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland Opera has a philosophy of excellence and risk-taking underpinned by an imaginative programming policy and first-rate casting. Northern Ireland Opera is committed to broadening the audience for this incredible art form that famously combines exciting stories, big spectacle, and great music.
Roy Bailie OBE, Chairman Fionnuala Jay-O’Boyle CBE, Vice-Chair James Hunt Stephen Kingon CBE Ken Lindsay Professor Dolores O’Reilly Jane Wells
PATRON AND AMBASSADORS Sean Rafferty, Patron The Countess of Caledon The Viscountess Dunluce William Montgomery OBE
MANAGEMENT TEAM Artistic Director Oliver Mears General Manager Clíona Donnelly Outreach & Administration Officer Mark Irwin-Watson Marketing Manager Andrew Forsythe Projects Director Steven Hadley
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Young Artists Programme One of Northern Ireland Opera’s most important roles is to support and develop the opera stars of the future and since 2011 we have been doing this through our Young Artists Programme. The programme is designed to nurture aspiring talent and showcase up-and-coming performers from across Ireland giving four young singers or creative artists the opportunity to hone their skills, whilst being supported at a transitional stage in their careers. They work closely with the company and this is a relationship which will continue as they develop in their profession,
David Howes graduated from DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama in 2014 with 1st class honours. David has since begun studying with Robert Dean in London. He has had the pleasure to work with Wexford Opera Festival singing the role of Sciarrone in Tosca as part of their Short Works, Peintre and 1st Philsosphe in Louise at Buxton Opera Festival, and Count Ceprano in Rigoletto with Opera Theatre Company. He has also sung in the chorus with all three companies and also with Northern Ireland Opera for The Magic Flute and Wide Open Opera for Nixon in China. In oratorio, to name but a few, David has sung the bass solo in Handel’s Messiah with Dun Laoghaire Choral Society conducted by David Brophy, Mozart’s Requiem at the Lismore Music Festival conducted by Marco Zambelli, and Dixit Dominus with the Irish Chamber Orchestra conducted by Jonathan Cohen. David won the John McCormack bursary in 2014 for Baritone Solo and also The Merchant Cup for the Duet competition.
Sinéad O’Kelly has just attained a Masters with Distinction from the Royal College of Music in London, where she studied with Tim Evans-Jones and Caroline Dowdle. She is a BBC/Arts Council NI Young Musicians Platform Award Holder for 2015/16. She is the 2013 winner of the Courtney Kenny English Song Award, attained 2nd place in the RCM’s 2014 Joan Chisell Schumann Competition and won the Schubert Song Prize at the 2015 International Mozart Competition. She has participated in masterclasses with Sarah Connolly, Dame Ann Murray, Susan Bullock and Rebecca Evans. Sinéad is Northern Ireland Opera’s Voice of 2013 having won the main prize and the audience prize at the 2013 Festival of Voice. On the stage, Sinéad made her professional debut singing First Lady in Northern Ireland Opera’s 2014 autumn tour of The Magic Flute. She recently made her Royal Albert Hall solo debut singing Persephone in the world première of John Barber’s oratorio Seven Seeds.
for example previous participants have sung solo roles in productions or conducted short works. Young Artists will receive support in a number of ways including coaching and training, access to international shows, and the chance to be involved with Northern Ireland Opera productions, events and outreach activities. Northern Ireland Opera Young Artists 2016-17: David Howes (Baritone), Sinéad O’Kelly (MezzoSoprano), Elaine Pelan (Soprano) & Dominica Williams (Mezzo-Soprano)
Elaine Pelan graduated from Queen’s University Belfast with a First Class Honours in music. Here she played the role of Ruggiero in her first opera, Alcina. She graduated from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in July 2016 with a Masters in Vocal Studies, under the tutelage of Suzanne Murphy. She has taken part in masterclasses with David Lowe, Mary King and Darren Hargan and has sung in the chorus for Northern Ireland Opera’s productions of The Flying Dutchman, L'elisir d'amore and Macbeth. During her time in Cardiff she has sung Miss Baggot in The Little Sweep, Dorothy in Cendrillon, and Bridesmaid in The Marriage of Figaro, and has also covered the role of Cherubino. She also played Hermia from A Midsummer Night’s Dream in RWCMD's opera scenes concert. Other concert highlights include the Royal High School of Bath's performance of Mozart's Requiem, as the alto soloist.
Dominica Williams studied Drama and German at Trinity College Dublin and is now pursuing a career in singing. She has sung in choruses for Northern Ireland Opera, Opera Theatre Company, RTÉ Concert Orchestra and Wide Open Opera, and also covered the role of Second Secretary in Nixon in China with Wide Open Opera. She has also had solo roles as Second Bridesmaid in The Marriage of Figaro with Lyric Opera Ireland, Peep Bo in Lyric Opera Ireland's The Mikado, Tessa in The Gondoliers with Rathmines and Rathgar Musical Society, and Second Maiden in Northern Ireland Opera's Turandot.
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“Northern Ireland Opera is one of the best things to happen to the operatic scene in a long time” – Classic FM
Don Giovanni (2016) “A hugely entertaining and witty show” – The Times “A witty production that deftly balances comedy and seriousness” – The Guardian Turandot (2015) “With this co-production of Turandot with Nuremberg and Toulouse, Northern Ireland Opera makes plain its ambitions to be an international force… it will fill you with awe” – The Spectator “Stunning” – Irish Times Agrippina (2015) “All-round perfection” – Sunday Business Post
L’Elisir d’Amore (2013) “This was among the most unaffectedly heart–warming and well–thought–out Elisirs you could hope for” – Opera Now “A real tour de force” – Irish Times The Bear (2013) “A richly enjoyable and entertaining production” – Opera Magazine “An effervescently enjoyable evening” – Belfast Telegraph The Flying Dutchman (2013) “An achievement of which Wagner himself would no doubt have been proud” – The Daily Telegraph “A thrilling Wagner debut” – The Independent on Sunday “Electrifying” – The Observer
“An evening to remember” – Irish Times Salome (2015) “A fine, startling achievement that confirms Northern Ireland Opera’s growing status as a force to be reckoned with, and marks out Belfast itself as a place to be for cutting-edge music theatre” – The Guardian “A fine company achievement, astounding for Northern Ireland Opera in its short career” – The Sunday Times
Noye’s Fludde (2012) “A stunningly effective spectacle... a resonant, entrancing production” – Opera Magazine “An enchanting show” – The Sunday Times “Simply gorgeous” – Irish Times The Turn of the Screw (2012) “It’s remarkable” – The Independent on Sunday “Absolutely superb” – Opera Magazine
The Magic Flute (2014) “Couldn’t have been more of a success…a Flute farbetter-endowed companies would be proud to tour” – The Sunday Times
Hansel and Gretel (2011) “Lively, funny and provocatively gruesome” – The Sunday Times
“Watch this space, Irish opera has a new capital in Belfast, dedicated to doing things of genuine interest” – The Tablet
“A feisty staging of Humperdinck’s opera… Northern Ireland Opera continues to punch above its weight” – The Independent on Sunday
The Importance of Being Earnest (2013) “Work of such uncompromising brilliance from a provincial UK company is, quite simply, astounding” – Opera Now
Tosca (2011) “A triumphant debut” – The Independent on Sunday
“It is hard to imagine a more colourful, witty and deliriously enjoyable staging than this” 26 – The Sunday Times
“A remarkable achievement…the results breathed charisma and conviction” – The Times
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28 – 29 APRIL Ulster Hall, Belfast
14 MAY Grand Opera House, Belfast 6 – 12 May Republic of Ireland tour