Opera lovers will have their diary filled in 2020 with the WA Opera presenting a wide range of works throughout the year.
In keeping with West Australian Opera’s dream of presenting opera that moves, enchants and makes people think about the magic of being alive in the world today, the company’s Music Director, Chris van Tuinen, has developed a program for the 2020 Season which takes diversity of choice and access to new levels.
The year commences in February with a re-staging of Jimmy Chi’s coming of age musical Bran Nue Dae at the Regal Theatre. Presented in association with Perth Festival, this Opera Conference production marks the 30th anniversary of this first-ever aboriginal musical and will take audiences on an exuberant ride through 1960’s Western Australia.
The City of Perth’s annual ‘Opera in the Park’ continues to grow in popularity with Perth audiences …… and why not: a balmy summer evening in Perth with great music and singing presented free beside our beautiful Swan River against the backdrop of the City skyline. The 2020 Opera in the Park with be Engelbert Humperdinck’s timeless classic Hansel and Gretel which will be sung in English. That’s 19th century composer Engelbert Humperdinck, not the 1960’s crooner who borrowed the composer’s name.
Also in February, West Australian Symphony Orchestra and Perth Festival, in association with West Australia Opera, will present Beethoven’s only opera: the epic Fidelio. Featuring the full force of the orchestra, the West Australian Opera Chorus and the WASO Chorus in our magnificent Perth Concert Hall, this production promises to be one of the highlights of the 2020 Perth Festival.
The next event in the 2020 Season will be presented in March, also at the Perth Concert Hall. Star Navigator, a new work by Tim Finn OBE, is based on the true story of Tupaia, a Tahitian star navigator who sailed with James Cook on the Endeavour, This is joint commission between New Zealand Opera, Victoria Opera and West Australian Opera.
In May, the 2020 Season moves to at the University of Western Australia where the iconic Winthrop Hall will be the venue for Mendelssohn’s towering oratorio Elijah. Presented in association with UWA Conservatorium of Music, over 150 performers will be singing from the stage, the galleries and the central floor. This World Premiere production will feature students from the Conservatorium as Chorus and Orchestra.
The first mainstage production for 2020 will be Cavalleria Rusticana & Pagliacci at His Majesty’s Theatre in July. These two one-act operas make an ideal pairing with their themes of love, betrayal and revenge in rural settings. How could ‘Cav & Pag’ not be presented together!
For the young – and the young at heart – Raminsh’s The Nightingale is based on a Hans Christian Anderson story about a Chinese Emperor who is enchanted by the singing of a nightingale in his garden. This collaboration with Co:3 Australia, WA Young Voices, WA Youth Orchestra and WA Youth Theatre Company is part of the AWESOME Festival. It will be presented at His Majesty’s Theatre in October.
The 2020 Season concludes with the Australian debut of the Glyndebourne Production of Cosi Fan Tutte 9pictured top) . Although it was first performed 200 years before Jimmy Chi’s seminal work came to the stage, Mozart’s masterpiece, with its sublime music and instantly recognisable arias, has stood the test of time; and, in Glyndebourne’s hands, will make for a compelling opera experience.
West Australian Opera is conscious of its role as the opera company for all West Australians, so activities in 2020 are not just confined to Perth. In 2020 the company will return to the regions with performances in iconic Western Australian locations and regional venues as well as regional education tours for primary and secondary schools.
Source: Media Release
