Brio SCOTTISHOPERA.ORG.UK
ISSUE 34 / WINTER 2020
La bohème
Outdoor ovations for Puccini’s classic love story
STAGE TO SCREEN
EMERGING ARTISTS
FOND FAREWELLS
How opera reached new audiences online
New faces and new projects for our rising operatic stars
We say goodbye to four Company stalwarts
WELCOME
Welcome to this special – and unusual – issue of Brio.
ISSUE 34 / WINTER 2020 CONTENTS
Because of the Coronavirus pandemic, we haven’t been in a position to produce a printed magazine for several months now. But as you’ll see across the following pages, we’ve been very busy creating opera productions both live and online, even in these challenging times.
3 Headlines Online events for supporters RPS Awards nomination Farewell to Nicholas Ross and Alan Warhurst
All arts organisations, Scottish Opera included, have faced enormous difficulties since March 2020. But despite the on-going restrictions that the global pandemic has caused for our activities, the Company remains in a strong position. We are holding our own financially, thanks to continuing support from the Scottish Government, as well as from our many individual donors and Trust funders. This support is helping us to find new ways of working while we weather the storm, and of course live performance remains our core aim. We have continued to provide crucial work to Company employees and a large number of freelance staff right across the organisation. And we’ve been delighted to see the evident pleasure that this work has brought to people, whether through feedback on an online video or the smiles on people’s faces following our live performances in September. This special issue of Brio is a celebration of the work that Scottish Opera has produced in the past eight months, most of which is still available to watch online. We’d encourage you to sample any of the wide range of performances we’ve produced that you haven’t already seen, or to revisit any performances that you particularly enjoyed. We are enormously grateful for the ongoing support we’ve received from all our supporters, which of course is more crucial than ever during these challenging times. We’ve also received a lot of positive feedback on the online events we’ve held for supporters – please join us for one if you haven’t already. Without you, we wouldn’t have been able to produce the work we have since March – nor look ahead to a return to live performances in the future. We are planning to present The Gondoliers and Utopia, Limited as soon as we’re able. And we also plan to stage A Midsummer Night’s Dream, which had almost finished its rehearsal period when lockdown struck, in a future season.
4–5 Feature La bohème 6 Light It In Red The Telephone 7 Pop-up Opera 8–9 Opera on Screen The Narcissistic Fish La bohème – The Journey Back The Diary of One Who Disappeared Opera Highlights 10 The Gondoliers Fever! 11 Farewell to Anne Higgins 12 – 13 Emerging Artists
In the meantime, please enjoy this special celebratory issue.
14 Farewell John Liddell, welcome Lorna Price Alex Reedijk General Director
15 Looking Ahead Become a Supporter
CONTACT US
Scottish Opera, 39 Elmbank Crescent, Glasgow G2 4PT Telephone: 0141 248 4567 | Web: scottishopera.org.uk Registered in Scotland Number SC037531 Scottish Charity Number SC019787
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IMAGE CREDITS: Sussie Ahlburg, Julie Broadfoot, James Glossop, Colin Hattersley, Julie Howden, Elaine Livingstone, Iain Piercy, Thomas Ramage. Writers: Caroline Dooley, Catriona Downie, Kirsten Howie, Helen Macdonald, Hannah Salvi Print: J Thomson Colour Printers This magazine is printed on an FSC® certified paper. © Scottish Opera 2020
HEADLINES
SUPPORTER EVENTS GO ONLINE Social distancing might have put paid to a lot of live performances since March, including the special events for supporters that everyone at Scottish Opera enjoys and values. But the Company’s Fundraising Team has taken events for supporters online, with popular and well-received results. Sir Thomas Allen (pictured right) joined staff and supporters for a conversation about life, lockdown and his love of music, chatting with General Director Alex Reedijk about his new-found baking skills, his career on opera stages across the world, and his thoughts on how opera might emerge from the pandemic restrictions. Baritone David Stout was joined by pianist Susannah Wapshott in a selection of arias particularly associated with Sir Tom, and supporters also got their chance to pose their individual questions. There was an event for supporters to bid farewell to the Company’s 2019/20 Emerging Artists following their live online concert on 23 July. And the four 2020/21 Emerging Artist singers took part in a subsequent event, talking about their respective backgrounds and journeys into opera, as well as performing two duets. There were also contributions from Head of Casting Sarah-Jane Davies on the Emerging Artists
programme, and from Head of Music Derek Clark on how the Company is adapting the programme in the face of pandemic restrictions. We aim to resume live events as soon as restrictions allow, and in the meantime, watch out for more online events for supporters in the future.
Orchestral farewells Please join us in bidding a fond farewell to Nicholas Ross (pictured below left), who leaves The Orchestra of Scottish Opera in February 2021. Currently Principal Clarinet, Nicholas has played in every Scottish Opera production for 42 years: he was a founder member of the Orchestra when it was formed in 1980, and also played for the Company in earlier productions. Earlier this year we also said goodbye to our bassoonist and contrabassoonist Alan Warhurst (pictured below right), who first played with Scottish Opera in 1976. Alan shared his happiest memories of working with the Company at scottishopera.org.uk/ alan-warhurst-principal-contrabassoon-and-subprincipal-bassoon
RPS AWARDS NOMINATION We’re delighted to have been nominated in the Royal Philharmonic Society Awards’ Opera and Theatre category for our production of Nixon in China earlier this year. John Fulljames’ brilliantly colourful staging, a co-production with The Royal Danish Theatre and Teatro Real Madrid, took a new perspective on this pioneering ‘documentary opera’ by composer John Adams and librettist Alice Goodman, considering Nixon’s 1972 visit to China in terms of media manipulation and political legacy. Congratulations, too, to soprano Natalya Romaniw who won the RPS Singer Award for roles including her lead in our production of Puccini’s Tosca in Autumn 2019. scottishopera.org.uk WINTER 2020 / 3
Love in a time of Covid Staff Director Roxana Haines’ powerful outdoor La bohème in September returned opera to live audiences, and faced the themes of the pandemic head-on. She explains the challenges of bringing such an ambitious conception to the stage
T
he whole process, from music rehearsals to final performances, took place within three weeks. Three weeks! It’s incredible what everyone achieved.’ Scottish Opera’s Staff Director Roxana Haines is talking about the Company’s recent production of La bohème, staged – against the odds – outdoors in the Edington Street Production Studios car park, with a socially distanced cast and orchestra, and audience members seated in bubbles at socially distanced tables. And put together, as Roxana says, at remarkable speed. There was a brief window in the early Autumn when eased restrictions and temperate weather made live outdoor performances just about possible. With La bohème, as well as with the Pop-up Opera tour (see page 7), Scottish Opera jumped at the chance to bring live opera to audiences again after several months without it. La bohème was a huge gamble, but one that paid off magnificently, with enormous acclaim 4 / WINTER 2020 scottishopera.org.uk
from critics, and sold-out, equally appreciative audiences. Part of that gamble, in fact, was the very decision to stage this famously illness-themed opera at the height of a global pandemic. It might provide welcome insights into our predicament, but it might also seem rather too close to the bone. ‘I felt a huge responsibility to respect the parallels with our current situation,’ says Roxana. ‘I was always conscious of the story we were telling, and why it was so relevant – I wanted to make sure we were sensitive with people still dying all over the world.’ Aside from its thematic relevance, there were of course other challenges of making an opera under social distancing restrictions. ‘La bohème was a lot of people’s first time back working after lockdown,’ Roxana continues, ‘so we were creating new ways of being in a rehearsal room while remaining socially distanced.’ Company film maker Antonia Bain captured the emotions of cast and orchestra in her behind-the-scenes documentary The Journey Back, still
available to watch on the Scottish Opera website (see page 8). Given those trying conditions, it’s all the more remarkable that the production achieved such power and focus. The ingenious staging – conceived with designer Anna Orton – took place beneath a specially erected roof, with two open-sided lorry trailers next to the audience, and a central raised platform representing Café Momus, where audience members played the roles of other drinkers.
‘I felt a huge responsibility to respect the parallels with our current situation’ In fact, Scottish Opera supporters played a crucial role in creating the atmosphere of the production’s bohemian staging. The Company’s
LA BOHÈME
Fundraising Department put out a call for textiles to use in the set, and received a breathtaking response, with donations of tablecloths, throws, wraps and plenty more. One contribution was an unfinished piece of embroidery started before the donor’s marriage in 1959; another generous supporter sent her grandmother’s embroidered tablecloths. Many people were happy to donate their textiles permanently to the Company, and Head of Props Marian Colquhoun was delighted with the contributions, which will continue to be used in productions. Of course, everyone in the Company sends out their gratitude for all the contributions, and we’re delighted that so many people felt able to be involved. A couple of months after the performances, how does Roxana look back on them now? With a great deal of pride, she says, as well as an acceptance of the strangeness of the situation. ‘I’m grateful that everyone was so supportive of the idea – it was a dream team all round. Looking back, I think a bit of me was waiting for a phone call every day to say the show couldn’t go ahead. That meant I had to find peace and acceptance every day in case it was our last. So I focused on making every rehearsal count, being happy
with what we achieved, and not taking anything for granted. That positivity and acceptance is definitely something I’ll take into my future work.’ In many ways, the performances asked a lot from audiences, who were required to turn up early, have their temperatures checked before entry, wear masks throughout, sit separated from others – and, let’s not forget, endure the unpredictable weather. Scottish Opera took its safety responsibilities extremely seriously – indeed, they were built into the very fabric of the production – and we’re delighted that audience members felt so safe during the shows. ‘I watched every show,’ Roxana remembers, ‘and every time, the silence between the final chords of the opera and the applause got longer and longer. Audiences sat there with us in this blurry space between social conventions, and they let themselves be present in the music, the reality of their own lives, or perhaps the wonder of escaping for a bit of time. We all sat there, tears rolling into our masks together, and it’s those moments of connection I’ll never forget.’ Read the La bohème programme at scottishopera.org.uk/discoveropera/la-boheme-programme/
WHAT THE MEDIA SAID
AUDIENCE REACTIONS
‘A true triumph of artistic endeavour over adversity and a great morale boost in difficult times’
‘Inspired and inspiring production… Instead of allowing Covid-19 to be an inhibitor, Scottish Opera saw it as a creative opportunity’
The Guardian
Opera Magazine
‘Little wonder that, by the end of this bold La bohème, the weather-beaten audience was cheering this production to its temporary rafters’
‘A stunning triumph of event opera’
The Daily Telegraph
‘Operatic magic’
The Stage
‘A production that lays bare the emotional heart of a society in crisis’
‘A beautiful performance, and it so cleverly incorporated the health and safety necessities.’ ‘The sun shone, the birds sang, musicians and performers gave their all from a safe distance. With a heartbreaking end moment that none of us saw coming.’ ‘Singing and playing were wonderful. Special commendations for dealing with the dreadful weather!’
The Herald
‘The whole event – including the rain – was unforgettable.’
‘A poignant allegory of our times’
‘Brought the real world of Covid-19 onto the operatic stage with heartfelt insight’
The Scotsman
The Arts Desk
‘What a brave thing to undertake, and the performance was far better than we could have possibly expected.’
The Times
scottishopera.org.uk WINTER 2020 / 5
LIGHT IT IN RED / THE TELEPHONE
LIGHT IT IN RED On 11 August at our Elmbank Crescent building, and 30 September at our Edington Street Production Studios (pictured right), Scottish Opera took part in the nationwide campaign Light It In Red, highlighting the devastating impact that the Coronavirus pandemic is having on the arts and events industries. The Company stood in solidarity with colleagues across the UK by lighting our office and studios in red to help draw attention to the serious situation facing our industry as a result of the pandemic. Next to the Production Studios, there was a single shaft of white light – one of 60 around the UK, each one signifying 10,000 potential job losses. Without significant and immediate support the entire live events sector supply chain is at risk of collapse.
WHAT THE MEDIA SAID
‘A little comic gem’ The Times
‘Funny, sad and heartwarming… A real treat’ The Guardian
‘There’s a delicious warmth about this film… Worth an Oscar’ The Scotsman
The Telephone Two young lovers, the most important question of their lives – and a pesky mobile phone that just won’t stop interrupting them. Gian Carlo Menotti’s 1947 comic two-hander The Telephone got a thoroughly contemporary makeover in Scottish Opera’s much-praised contribution to the Edinburgh International Festival’s My Light Shines On project, launched back in August. Director Daisy Evans relocated Menotti’s distracted duo from 1940s America to 6 / WINTER 2020 scottishopera.org.uk
city centre Edinburgh – the bar of the King’s Theatre, to be precise – in the present day, as calls and texts beseige the couple as they’re about to make the most crucial decision of their lives. Produced from start to finish in just a few weeks, at astonishing speed compared with a more conventional staged production, and filmed with all necessary social distancing measures in place, Daisy’s warm, charming film brought together young singers Soraya Mafi and Jonathan McGovern
‘A delicious bite-sized chunk of romantic opera’ Bachtrack with Company Music Director Stuart Stratford conducting, and also marked the first time that The Orchestra of Scottish Opera reunited to perform after the isolation of lockdown. Watch this uplifting, comic opera film on the Scottish Opera website – along with a separate, specially produced audio-described version: scottishopera.org.uk/shows/ the-telephone
POP-UP OPERA
AUDIENCE REACTIONS
‘Exceptionally well organised and adhered strictly to the guidelines, making us feel completely safe.’ ‘My first live performance since March. As an emerging director, it’s given me so much hope. We can do this!’ ‘Such a treat. The Company were lovely, very kind and helpful. It’s so encouraging to see the creative and inventive ways artists are finding to stage performances. We need to hang on to the little beacons of light like this.’
COME RAIN OR SHINE The Pop-up Opera tour took three productions to no fewer than 14 outdoor venues right across Scotland in September Although theatres couldn’t invite audiences back inside in September, Scottish Opera was thrilled to take opera out to you. We got back on the road for our annual Pop-up Opera tour, and we were excited to visit no fewer than 14 venues across Scotland – from Ayr to Inverness, Dundee to Peebles. More than 2,000 people joined us for our trio of operas in miniature – A Little Bit of Don Giovanni, A Litte Bit of The Gondoliers, and new family show The Song of the Clyde – with two opera singers (including Andrew McTaggart, pictured above right), storyteller, cellist and guitarist. Each show was performed from an open-sided lorry trailer, with audience members seated outside in physically distanced pods (come rain or shine!). Many of you explained how secure you felt with the careful safety measures put in place – and how moved you were to experience live opera after so long without it.
WHAT THE MEDIA SAID
As well as outdoor spaces at some familiar theatres, Pop-up performers and audiences also found themselves in some more surprising spots – along the banks of the Clyde in Greenock, or alongside an Avro Vulcan fighter jet at East Lothian’s National Museum of Flight. We are hugely grateful for the unwavering support from sponsors Baillie Gifford, who faithfully maintained support for the project even when plans for the tour had to be substantially changed, and who played a crucial role in bringing back live opera to venues across Scotland after lockdown. We’re specially grateful, too, to The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust for their support of A Little Bit of The Gondoliers. Thanks also go to Scottish Opera’s Education Angels, The Rowena Alison Goffin Charitable Trust, H R Creswick’s Charitable Trust and The W.A. Cargill Fund.
‘Andrew McTaggart and Sarah Power are as adept with comedic patter songs are they are with romantic crooning’ The Herald
‘Colourful stylish charm… consummate singing… a veritable ray of sunshine’ The Scotsman
‘Light-hearted but soulful’ The Stage
‘A ray of sunshine in lockdown gloom’ Highland News, Inverness
‘The performers managed a musical intimacy that opera thrives on’ Dundee Courier scottishopera.org.uk WINTER 2020 / 7
SCOTTISH OPERA FILMS
Opera on screen With many performances forced online by the pandemic, Scottish Opera’s in-house film maker Antonia Bain reveals how she went about rethinking opera for video
W
ith theatres and concert halls closed because of Covid-19, life for everyone in the performing arts has changed dramatically since March. Scottish Opera is no exception: right across the Company, people have suddenly found themselves working in unexpected ways on unusual projects, and responding to a new world of online work, outdoor performances, concertina-ed timelines and new expectations. And, let’s not forget, new opportunities too. It’s probably fair to say that few people in the Company experienced this change more than Antonia Bain, whose official job title is Digital Content Producer, but who since March found herself right in the centre of producing and filming many of Scottish Opera’s online productions. ‘It’s been incredibly rewarding,’ Antonia explains, ‘albeit a little stressful! Working on these productions has definitely pushed me out of my comfort zone and built on my skills. I’ve also relished the opportunity to experience much more about how opera and theatre are made. It’s one thing to document a behindthe-scenes film, but actually to be part of the making of a production is completely different.’ In fact, Antonia’s new activities began even before March. The opera film The Narcissistic Fish – a collaboration between Antonia and Scottish Opera’s former Composer in Residence Samuel Bordoli, with a libretto by Jenni Fagan –
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went online in June, but had been in the pipeline for several months previously. It was always conceived as a new opera created specifically for film (rather than simply a filmed stage production), and happened to be nearing completion when lockdown hit.
‘Despite working under such crazy conditions, it proved to be an opportunity for great creativity’ ‘At the time of making it, it felt like such a big experiment – as a Company, we’d never attempted anything like this before,’ Antonia explains. ‘Looking back, I’d never have predicted that The Narcissistic Fish would become so relevant, but the project really proved that you can take opera out of the theatre. It’s had more than 60,000 views on YouTube, and it’s reached a huge non-opera audience, which I’m really proud of.’
THE NARCISSISTIC FISH
THE DIARY OF ONE WHO DISAPPEARED
OPERA HIGHLIGHTS AUTUMN 2020
WHAT THE MEDIA SAID
WHAT THE MEDIA SAID
WHAT THE MEDIA SAID
Bachtrack
Vox Carnyx
‘Antonia Bain’s direction is impeccably neat. A pertinent piece for our times’ The Times
Watch online: scottishopera.org.uk/ shows/the-narcissistic-fish The Narcissistic Fish is supported by Scottish Opera Emerging Artists Benefactors, Scottish Opera’s New Commissions Circle and Idlewild Trust
‘A compelling treatment of a richly ambiguous work, one that invited us into the drama’
‘Infinitely palatable, sweetly sung, and portrayed with credible collegiate interaction’
Watch online: scottishopera.org.uk/ shows/the-diary-of-onewho-disappeared
Watch online: scottishopera.org.uk/ shows/opera-highlightsautumn-2020
The Diary of One Who Disappeared is supported by The Scottish Opera Endowment Trust and The Friends of Scottish Opera
Opera Highlights is supported by The Friends of Scottish Opera, JTH Charitable Trust and The Scottish Opera Endowment Trust
Opposite page: film maker Antonia Bain; Arthur Bruce, Mark Nathan and Charlie Drummond in The Narcissistic Fish ; and behind the scenes at the making of the film
In September, Antonia went on to collaborate with stage Director Rosie Purdie on an ingenious stage/film production of Janáček’s The Diary of One Who Disappeared, for the Lammermuir Festival’s 2020 online events. ‘I’m particularly proud of that,’ says Antonia, ‘because it was very challenging, not least in filming an orchestra and singers without having any experience of working in theatre. But working with Rosie was very rewarding, in terms of watching an opera director at work and being able to collaborate to create a single vision.’ And although not itself an opera production, Antonia singles out her short film documentary The Journey Back (scottishopera.org.uk/discover-opera/la-bohemeprogramme) – charting Company members’ and soloists’ return to live performance in September’s outdoor performances of La bohème – as particularly moving. ‘It was a massive release for me, because it was the first proper film I’d made since lockdown. I loved the freedom in creating something from scratch, and being able to hear different people’s experience of lockdown.’
Most recently, Antonia has again collaborated with Rosie on capturing her witty, social distancing-themed Opera Highlights on film, with colourful and captivating results. From the plethora of home-produced videos at the beginning of lockdown to the far more ambitious, elaborate films being created today, online performances have clearly developed hugely since March – a rapid development that has also taken place within Scottish Opera’s own films. ‘Despite working under such crazy conditions,’ remembers Antonia, ‘it proved to be an opportunity for great creativity within the Company. From an online film-making perspective, there’s now so much competition in online material that if you’re not making something relevant, audiences will go elsewhere. But that said, there’s also a massive international audience that doesn’t need to be in Scotland to experience something we’ve created.’ Does she think the move to online will have a permanent impact on live performance? ‘We might be on the cusp of a revolution in filming the performing arts,’ she says. ‘I can only hope that once theatres can open again, both filmed and live performance can co-exist.’ Watch all of Scottish Opera’s films at scottishopera.org.uk/onscreen scottishopera.org.uk WINTER 2020 / 9
THE GONDOLIERS / FEVER!
A musical voyage to Venice Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Gondoliers – alongside their penultimate opera, Utopia, Limited – was one of the most eagerly anticipated productions in Scottish Opera’s 2019/20 Season, in a co-production with D’Oyly Carte Opera and State Opera South Australia. So it was all the more disappointing, for both audiences and the Company, when the pandemic forced it to be postponed. But never fear: there’s every intention to bring this sumptuous production to the stage as soon as we’re able to. A huge thank you, too, to everyone who donated to The Gondoliers’ Play a Supporting Role Appeal. We have been truly moved by supporters’ enthusiasm and generosity, which has enabled the Company’s workshops to keep hard at work in bringing the production’s sets, props and costumes vividly to life. Although we haven’t yet been able to bring audiences live performances of The Gondoliers, Scottish Opera Head of Music Derek Clark and members of the original cast worked together during lockdown to create a pair of special films that both tell the opera’s story, with all its musical highlights, and also delve a little into how Sullivan’s music and Gilbert’s witty libretto marry together. ‘I was delighted it turned out so well,’ Derek remembers. ‘I recorded the accompaniments at home, before sending them to the singers. They were all happy to be involved, and the end result is also a tribute to Matt Harvey, our indefatigable Sound Engineer, who spent hours putting all the individual recordings together.’
As a captivating counterpoint to these two in-depth videos, Derek also conducted instrumentalists from The Orchestra of Scottish Opera and chorus singers in a colourful, kaleidoscopic video of the rousing ‘Dance a Cachucha’ from Act II (pictured above), with every part recorded individually at home, and cunningly stitched together. Watch all these videos online at the Scottish Opera website, where you can also delve into highlights from classic past productions with articles, interviews, videos and more. scottishopera.org.uk/shows/spotlight-on
FEVER-ISH ACTIVITY With schools shut and children stuck at home, lockdown posed colossal challenges for parents and youngsters alike. Scottish Opera’s Education Team looked hard at how they could help. The result was a project that not only provided much-needed activities for 8- to 12-year-olds in their homes, but also helped them understand the confusing things happening in the world around them. Based on one of the Company’s popular primary schools tours, Fever! is a funny, fast-moving and topical story that allows children to explore the subject of viruses, how they spread – and how we beat them. There were new songs, activities and teaching videos posted on the Scottish Opera website each week throughout May and June, all of them designed with key learning outcomes from the Curriculum for Excellence in mind. Fever! culminated in an online performance led by professional singers at the end 10 / WINTER 2020 scottishopera.org.uk
Good and bad bacteria battle it out in our production of Fever!
of June, streamed live on YouTube, and so far watched more than 1,100 times by children worldwide. In total, 14,000 people from Los Angeles to Beijing and Thurso to Brisbane have sampled Fever! ’s songs and activities – a truly global project! And it’s all still available to watch and get involved with on the Scottish Opera website. Following Fever! ’s enormous international success, achieved thanks to the support of our many Trust funders and our Education Angels, the Education Department is dreaming up
ideas for future digital projects. There are exciting plans for projects involving all levels of primary pupils coming in the New Year, including a new primary schools opera, a project created in partnership with the Confucius Institute, and a new venture with some of the brass players from The Orchestra of Scottish Opera. More details will be unveiled soon! Watch online: scottishopera.org.uk/join-in/ fever-online
FAREWELL TO ANNE HIGGINS
Anne Higgins takes a bow Bid a fond farewell to the much-loved Friends Manager, who retires after 30 years with Scottish Opera
F
or the past three decades, our much-loved Friends Manager Anne Higgins has been a constant, quiet presence at the heart of Scottish Opera. Many supporters will have met her in theatre foyers and at events across the country. Anne has decided that the time has now come to take her well-earnt retirement. As Anne explains, when she began work at Scottish Opera, ‘the Friends were a separate charity, and I reported to the eight or nine people on the Executive Committee of the Council. John Mauceri was Music Director: I loved the American artists he engaged, and the jazz influence he brought to our work.’ Over the course of 30 years, Anne has seen the highs – as well as the occasional lows – of the world of opera. ‘I’ve interviewed dozens and dozens of singers, directors, conductors, choreographers, repetiteurs, chorus masters, librarians and more for Friends events, but I’ll never forget how nervous I was for the first one. Greer Grimsley from New Orleans is now famous for singing Wotan, and he couldn’t have been kinder to an inexperienced newbie! I also remember that hearing Janáček for the first time was a revelation. And Simon Keenlyside singing in La bohème made quite an impression!’
‘I’m really going to miss our supporters – I’ve made such great relationships with people over the years’ Which Scottish Opera productions would Anne count as her favourites? ‘Eugene Onegin, of course, and I really loved Werther. And Nixon in China was wonderful. There have also been some beautiful small-scale productions, such as Mary Stuart and L’elisir d’amore, and tours featuring amazing singers including Claire Rutter and Ian Storey.’ One tour featuring a particular young baritone proved especially memorable for Anne. ‘I met my husband Martin when he was singing in Così fan tutte,’ she explains. ‘I remember sneaking into a rehearsal to listen to him sing before his first night live on stage. When I heard him, I thought: now I know he’s a good singer, I can relax – thank goodness!’
Work on some of Scottish Opera’s holidays brought its own challenges: among other incidents, Anne remembers ‘standing in the centre of Warsaw at midnight, staring at a closed pharmacy and wondering where I could get a prescription for a member of the holiday group who had been taken ill during a performance.’ From her years of experiencing opera right across the world, she considers German destinations, particularly Leipzig, Dresden, Munich and Berlin, notable for their high musical standards, with Riga and Budapest among other standout stop-offs. Anne had made retirement plans to travel across Europe and see more opera, but for obvious reasons they’re on hold for now. Even her leaving party had to be held online. ‘I’m really going to miss our supporters – I’ve made such great relationships with people over the years and I’m looking forward to being able to see many of them again when we’re all in the audience together,’ she says. ‘On the other hand, I’ll be honest: although I greatly enjoyed the mornings when we all stuffed copies of Brio into envelopes together, I won’t miss carrying them all into the lift and feeding 1,500 large letters through the franking machine!’ Everyone at Scottish Opera wishes Anne a fantastic retirement, and we’re looking forward to raising a real glass to celebrate with her just as soon as we can. scottishopera.org.uk WINTER 2020 / 11
EMERGING ARTISTS / OPERA HIGHLIGHTS
EMERGING ARTISTS IN ACTION From the onset of lockdown, Scottish Opera’s exceptional young singers kept performance alive with Opera Highlights, both from home and from the stage Set up more than a decade ago, Scottish Opera’s Emerging Artists programme nurtures outstanding young singers and other professionals through a season-long series of performance and training opportunities – some, like Opera Highlights and roles in main-stage productions, in front of audiences, but others, from specialist coaching and professional guidance, taking place behind the scenes. Several singers who have taken part in the programme have gone on to glittering international careers, including soprano Jennifer France, tenor Elgan Llŷr Thomas and baritone Ben McAteer. And the Emerging Artists are not only vocalists: previous participants have included directors, composers in residence Gareth Williams and Lliam Paterson, repetiteurs Michael Papadopoulos and Jonathon Swinard (who’s now the Company’s Chorus Master), Elizabeth Salvesen Costume
Trainee Jasmine Clark, and Associate Producer Lucy Walters. The Emerging Artists programme plays a crucial role in both the Company’s performances and young artists’ early careers. So despite the pandemic-related uncertainty across the arts world, Scottish Opera has been determined to continue offering this period of full-time work to exceptional young artists at the beginnings of their careers. We’re delighted to welcome four singers to the 2020/21 Emerging Artists programme. ‘It’s the first time we have representatives of the four main voice types – soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor and baritone,’ explains Scottish Opera’s Head of Casting, Sarah-Jane Davies, ‘which will make for some exciting opportunities as they embark on their programme with us. We look forward to working closely with them in realising all that Scottish Opera has to offer.’
Catriona Hewitson Soprano
Born: Scotland Studied: City of Edinburgh Music School, Royal Northern College of Music, Royal College of Music Opera Studio Scottish Opera appearance: Voice 1 The Diary of One Who Disappeared Other operatic engagements include: Cis Albert Herring (The Grange Festival); Donna Rinaldo (Glyndebourne Touring Opera)
Margo Arsane Mezzo-soprano
Born: France Studied: CNSMD Lyon, Munich University of Music and Performing Arts, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, National Opera Studio Operatic engagements include: Child L’enfant et les sortilèges (Lyon Opera); Smeraldina/ Linette The Love for Three Oranges (Lorraine National Opera); Page of Herodias Salome (Paris Philharmonie)
Shengzhi Ren Tenor
Born: China Studied: Shanghai Conservatory of Music, Royal Academy of Music, National Opera Studio Operatic engagements include: Vaudémont Iolanta, Don José Carmen, Tamino The Magic Flute, Nemorino L’elisir d’amore, Borsa Rigoletto; Prince Cinderella (Opera North); Rodolfo La bohème (Welsh National Opera)
Arthur Bruce Baritone
Born: Scotland Studied: RCS Opera School, Royal Northern College of Music Scottish Opera appearances: Angus The Narcissistic Fish, Amadeus & The Bard, Opera Highlights Spring 2020, Schaunard La bohème Operatic engagements include: title role Gianni Schicchi (RCS Opera School)
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The Robertson Trust Emerging Artist 2020/21
OPERA HIGHLIGHTS – AT HOME AND ONLINE Scottish Opera’s Emerging Artists – both the 2019/20 cohort and the four singers taking part in the programme for 2020/21 – have been central to the Company’s online performances ever since lockdown struck back in March. And between them, they’ve come up with some novel and entertaining ways of reinterpreting our much-loved Opera Highlights productions – both conventional and unconventional…
OPERA HIGHLIGHTS@HOME Soon after Scotland went into lockdown, the 2019/20 Emerging Artists put together a wealth of opera videos to raise the spirits and entertain every musical taste. These Opera Highlights @Home short films – still available to view on the Scottish Opera website – were directed by Staff Director Roxana Haines, and feature soprano Charlie Drummond, baritones Arthur Bruce and Mark Nathan, repetiteur Michael Papadopoulos and Associate Artist, mezzo-soprano Heather Ireson. Mark duetted over Zoom with former Emerging Artist Sioned Gwen Davies in ‘Komm, Zigany’ from Kálmán’s Countess Maritza, and also texted (and sang, of course) Mozart’s ‘Là ci darem la mano’ with Heather while she was stranded in duvet-wrapped seclusion at home. Charlie joined Heather in a captivating candlelit ‘Barcarolle’ from Offenbach’s The Tales of Hoffmann,
and Arthur took a pause in an outdoor run to serenade an unknown beloved with ‘Deh vieni alla finestra’ from Mozart’s Don Giovanni. All the singers came together with pianist Michael for the ‘Easter Hymn’ from Mascagni’s Cavalleria rusticana, specially recorded for the Easter weekend. The 2019/20 Emerging Artists gathered – in person – for one last time on 23 July, in a final recital streamed live online from Scottish Opera’s Glasgow rehearsal studios. As the first time that the group had performed live since the March lockdown, it was an emotional occasion – and it’s still available to watch on the Scottish Opera website. Watch online: scottishopera.org.uk/shows/ opera-highlights-home/ scottishopera.org.uk/shows/ emerging-artist-recital/
OPERA HIGHLIGHTS AUTUMN 2020 With indoor performances still restricted, the annual Autumn Opera Highlights production went online – and straight into audiences’ front rooms! Filmed live at the Beacon Arts Centre in Greenock, Director Rosie Purdie’s humorous staging takes a wry look at the joys and frustrations facing performers in our new, socially distanced world – and the bizarre new habits we’ve been forced to acquire. And it went live to coincide with World Opera Day, on 25 October 2020. The Company’s 2020/21 Emerging Artists – Catriona, Margo, Shengzhi and Arthur – joined forces with pianist Susannah Wapshott in a glorious
selection of music by Verdi, Mozart, Donizetti, Bizet and more, as their characters clash, find romance, and finally rediscover the joys of being back on stage together. This colourful celebration is still available to watch on the Scottish Opera website. And looking ahead, don’t miss the four 2020/21 Emerging Artists in a witty new online production of Mozart’s Così fan tutte, available to watch on the Scottish Opera website shortly. Watch online: scottishopera.org.uk/shows/ opera-highlights-autumn-2020/
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COSTUME DEPARTMENT
Goodbye John, hello Lorna! We bid a fond farewell to Head of Costume John Liddell after four decades with the Company – and welcome Lorna Price to the role
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fter a remarkable 40 years with the Company, Scottish Opera’s renowned Head of Costume John Liddell retired in May. Across those four decades, he worked on more than 200 mainstage productions – from The Barber of Seville in 1980 to the as yet unseen A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Gondoliers, originally planned for 2020, and currently postponed to future seasons. Few people in the opera world have garnered the respect and affection that John has accumulated over the course of his long career, and his work for the Company has earnt him numerous accolades, including the Behind the Scenes Award at the 2018 Sunday Herald Culture Awards. John initially trained as a lawyer before ‘drifting’, as he terms it, into costume making, via a stint in a rock band. He cut his teeth at the BBC and Scottish Ballet, and never looked back. ‘I’ve always felt fulfilled as a costume maker because there are so many ways of being creative,’ he’s said. From his encyclopaedic knowledge of materials (and where to source them), to ensuring historical accuracy, guiding designers to achieve their vision, and costuming singers so they can perform at their best, John’s skill, passion and attention to detail are legendary, and he will be much missed. 14 / WINTER 2020 scottishopera.org.uk
What have been his favourite productions? He names Sir David McVicar’s La traviata and The Rake’s Progress, Sir Thomas Allen’s The Marriage of Figaro and, of course, Anthony Besch’s Tosca – perhaps because in it, as many of you may have seen, John finally came out from behind the curtain and took centre stage as the Cardinal in the 2019 tour. John leaves Scottish Opera’s Costume Department, however, in extremely capable hands: he gives the reins to Lorna Price. She is herself a long-standing member of the team, and worked closely with John as Deputy Head of Costume for nearly five years. With unusually few productions to costume (for obvious reasons), it’s been a strange time for Lorna to find herself stepping into the Head of Costume role. But she has kept herself and all of the Company’s costumiers busy. In April, Lorna assembled 18 members of her team – the majority of them working from their own homes – to make scrubs for NHS frontline staff. The project, organised by the group For the Love of Scrubs, allowed GP practices and hospitals to request scrubs, which would then be delivered directly to them. Thanks to the kind financial donations sent to Scottish Opera by many of you, Lorna was able to buy a massive 2,200m of material from Fabric Bazaar in the Glasgow Barras, and the team made 820 sets of scrubs, with beneficiaries including the ICU at Glasgow’s Royal Infirmary.
LOOKING AHEAD / BECOME A PATRON
LOOKING AHEAD The Coronavirus pandemic has meant that planning ahead with confidence is somewhat problematic. But we’re delighted to say that plans for the coming months are becoming ever more certain, and we’re excited to share them with you. By the time you’re reading this issue of Brio, our new filmed concert performance of Mozart’s Così fan tutte will be nearing release online. Featuring Scottish Opera’s four 2020/21 Emerging Artist singers – Catriona Hewitson, Margo Arsane, Shengzhi Ren and Arthur Bruce – alongside former Emerging Artist Charlie Drummond and Glasgowborn bass-baritone Michael Mofidian, Staff Director Roxana Haines’s concert staging imagines Mozart’s quartet of partner-swapping lovers as participants in a reality TV show, egged on to test their partners’ fidelity. In the New Year, we’ll be unveiling a new filmed concert performance of Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel, directed by Daisy Evans (The Telephone). At the same time, we’ve been continuing our crucial work with Scottish Opera Young Company. The bold new opera Rubble, by composer Gareth Williams and Scottish theatre legend Johnny McKnight, is planned for Summer 2021. We were sadly forced to postpone three operas at the end of the 2019/20 Season – A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Gondoliers and Utopia, Limited – but we’re working on audio recordings of the two Gilbert and Sullivan operas, and we aim to bring all three to the stage as soon as possible. Of course, there’s non-stop work being done behind the scenes to bring you more performances throughout 2021 – sign up to our newsletter at scottishopera.org.uk/sign-up to be among the first to know!
Become a Patron We are able to keep our vision on the future and continue to plan ahead during these uncertain times thanks to the committed support of our Patrons, whose help is even more crucial and appreciated than ever. We’re very grateful and proud of the investment and trust our Patrons have placed in Scottish Opera. Thank you. If you would like to become a Patron of Scottish Opera’s Alexander Gibson Circle, please complete the form below. For more details, email Grace Lyon, Patrons Manager, at grace.lyon@scottishopera.org.uk
Join the Alexander Gibson Circle Title
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Monthly gift £625 £417 £250 £150 £100 £50 £25 £15
Annual gift £7,500 £5,000 £3,000 £1,800 £1,200 £600 £300 £180
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If you would like to give by Direct Debit, please contact Grace Lyon, Patrons Manager on 0141 242 0594. Mark Nathan and William Morgan will be among the soloists in our audio recording of The Gondoliers
Please complete and return to: FREEPOST SCOTTISH OPERA Or give online at scottishopera.org.uk/supportus scottishopera.org.uk WINTER 2020 / 15
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Level of Patron (please select) Music Director’s Circle Opera Angel Opera Benefactor Platinum Gold Silver Mercury Bronze
Who’s pulling your strings...? Advance screenings Fri 11 & Sat 12 Dec at Eden Court Cinema Inverness
COSÌ FAN T U T TE Mozart Concert performance Conductor Stuart Stratford Concert Staging Roxana Haines Film Director Jonathan Haswell Supported by The Robertson Trust & Scottish Opera’s Emerging Artists Benefactors Core funded by
Registered in Scotland Number SC037531 Scottish Charity Number SC019787
Watch online from Sun 13 Dec 6pm scottishopera.org.uk/onscreen