2014 Season Brochure

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2014 SEASON 25th Anniversary

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Maometto secondo 2013

G a r s i n g t o n O p e r a at Wo r m s l e y

The 2014 season marks our 25th anniversary and in keeping with our ethos we celebrate with two masterpieces and one undiscovered gem. Whilst many of the artists performing have established international careers, we are also, as ever, proud to present some exceptionally talented young singers beginning to make their names on the world-wide opera stage.

Ludwig van Beethoven

The season opens on Friday 6 June and features a revival of our acclaimed 2009 production of Beethoven’s Fidelio; the British premiere of Offenbach’s fleet-footed and funny Vert-Vert; and Janácˇek’s 20th century masterpiece The Cunning Little Vixen.

Vert-Vert

We also present, in this First World War centenary year, Peace in our Time? a special commemorative festival focusing on the Beethovenian ideals of brotherhood, freedom and the elusive goal of peace. The climax of the festival will be a performance of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony.

The Cunning Little Vixen

“Like a beautiful flower, you cannot enjoy it for long, and so you enjoy it intensely” The Telegraph

Fidelio Jacques Offenbach

Leoš Janácˇ ek

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LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN

FIDELIO

F IDELIO LUDW I G VAN B EETHOVEN

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Written at a time of war and social upheaval, Fidelio, Beethoven’s only opera, both belongs to and transcends its time. One of the greatest operas in the repertoire, it has come to represent the individual’s struggle for love, truth and freedom from political oppression and has as much resonance today as it ever did. With the glowingly courageous figure of Leonore at its heart, who risks all to rescue her husband from the clutches of the evil Don Pizarro, Fidelio represents humanity’s ability to survive and triumph in the face of tyranny.

Leonore Florestan Don Pizarro Rocco Marzelline Jaquino Don Fernando

Rebecca von Lipinski Peter Wedd Darren Jeffery Stephen Richardson Jennifer France Sam Furness Joshua Bloom

2014 is the 200th anniversary of the opera’s first performance in its final version and our new Artistic Director, Douglas Boyd, who made his debut with the company conducting John Cox’s acclaimed production of Fidelio in 2009, picks up the baton again to bring this most life-affirming of operas to our new home at Wormsley.

Conductor Director Designer

Douglas Boyd John Cox Gary McCann

A revival of the 2009 production.

6, 8, 15, 18, 21, 28 June and 1, 5, 10, 13 July - 6.20pm Saturday 5 July - 4.15pm Special event Peace in our Time? Symposium, see page 8

Garsington Opera Orchestra and Chorus Sung in German with English surtitles

JACQUES OFFENBACH

VERT-VERT

VERT- VERT

BRITISH PREMIERE

J ACQUES O F F EN B ACH How could anyone resist an opera that opens with a tragicomic funeral for a deceased parrot held by the pupils of a girls’ convent school? The girls – this is a French convent so they know a thing or two – decide that their beloved pet must be replaced in some form and select the hopelessly innocent young man Valentin to be the happy recipient of all the doting attention they used to lavish on the parrot.

In the experienced hands of director Martin Duncan (Il turco in Italia, Garsington Opera 2011), we present a new translation of this enchanting work by conductor David Parry. Full of intoxicating melody and sparkling wit, this continuation of our Offenbach thread is the “Mozart of the Champs-Élysées” at his most charming.

Listen to extracts on our website.

7, 9, 14, 19, 24, 26 June and 3, 9 July - 6.15pm Monday 9 June - 4.45pm Pre-performance Talk about the opera and our production, see page 15

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Valentin/Vert-Vert Mimi La Corilla Mademoiselle Paturelle Baladon D’Arlange Bergerac Binet

Robert Murray Fflur Wyn Naomi O’Connell Yvonne Howard Geoffrey Dolton Quirijn de Lang Andrew Glover Mark Wilde

Conductor Director Designer

David Parry Martin Duncan Francis O’Connor

Garsington Opera Orchestra and Chorus Sung in English

ˇ EK LEOŠ J ANÁC

THE CUNNIN G LITTLE VIXEN

THE CUNNIN G LITTLE VIXEN LEOŠ J ANÁCˇ EK When a forester takes a vixen cub into his home, little does he realise what confusion and disorder this wild creature will create. A fantastical and beautiful story unfolds to take both the vixen and her lonely guardian on a transformational journey through emptiness, chaos, passion and ultimate self-discovery.

Perhaps the only opera inspired by a sharply observed and humorous comic strip, The Cunning Little Vixen is far from being cute or infantile. Set to the composer’s own libretto, Janácˇek extends and deepens the comic’s depiction of the inevitable cycle of life and death, writing music of enormous sensitivity, warmth and perception to a plot which addresses our own search for fulfilment, validation, and redemption. Conductor Garry Walker makes his debut with Garsington Opera, while Daniel Slater, director of our 2013 production of Die Entführung aus dem Serail, returns to explore one of the most significant works of the 20th century.

Listen to extracts on our website.

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Vixen Forester Harašta Schoolmaster Priest

Claire Booth Grant Doyle Joshua Bloom Timothy Robinson Henry Waddington

Conductor Director Designer

Garry Walker Daniel Slater Robert Innes Hopkins

Garsington Opera Orchestra, Chorus and Children’s Chorus Sung in Czech with English surtitles

22, 25, 27 June and 4, 8, 12 July - 6.45pm Tuesday 8 July - 5.15pm Pre-performance Talk about the opera and our production, see page 15

This production has been generously supported

by The Constellation of Garsington.

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PEACE IN OUR TIME ?

B EETHOVEN W EEKEND For the first time we present a special weekend event within our season. In a year which commemorates not only the centenary of the First World War but also the 200th anniversary of the end of the Napoleonic wars, we will be focusing on the Beethovenian ideal of the brotherhood of mankind.

Saturday 5 July Peace in our Time? Symposium and Fidelio performance Garsington Opera Pavilion, 4.15pm and 6.20pm Is the elusive goal of world peace any closer now than it was 100 years ago? This discussion, involving a historian, a politician and a broadcaster, all distinguished in their fields, explores the themes expressed in Fidelio including tyranny, justice and freedom from oppression.

This will be followed by a performance of Beethoven’s Fidelio.

Tickets Peace in our Time? Symposium ÂŁ15 Fidelio ticket prices are listed on page 11.

Should demand for tickets for Fidelio be high on 5 July, priority will be given to those wishing to attend the Peace in our Time? Symposium.

PEACE IN OUR TIME ?

Sunday 6 July On the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of the First World War we present a day of words and music, remembering and exploring the themes of justice, self-sacrifice and freedom from oppression, encapsulated in the words from the Ninth Symphony “Alle Menschen werden Brüder”. There will be a recital in the afternoon by internationally renowned cellist Steven Isserlis and the evening will conclude with a concert featuring Beethoven’s overture and complete incidental music to Goethe’s play Egmont and one of the greatest works of all, the Ninth Symphony. In addition, during the day there will be a unique opportunity to experience Wormsley to the full with visits to the Getty Library, a cricket match with international players, tours of the Walled Garden, a champagne reception and a masterclass showcasing our young artists.

Tickets & Information Ticket prices are the same as for opera performances, see page 11. As a special event, Peace in our Time? tickets may be booked in addition to your membership opera ticket allocation.

The dress code for the day (including the evening concert) is informal, as for a summer garden party. A buffet lunch, anniversary tea and special dinner menu will be available in our restaurant marquees. Alternatively, patrons are welcome to picnic in the grounds. *Premium tickets include Front Stalls seats, a personal tour of the Getty Library and a private reception with the artistic team.

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schedule OF EVENTs

From 11.30am Arrival From 11.45am Timed tours of the Getty Library

(limited to those with Premium tickets*)

From 12.30pm Twenty20 Cricket Match: England

Masters XI vs. a select International side

From 12.30pm Tours of the Walled Garden 2.30pm

Masterclass showcasing our young artists

4.30pm

Recital by Steven Isserlis, with readings to

include poems by Siegfried Sassoon

5.15pm

Champagne reception

6.30pm

Concert conducted by Douglas Boyd,

with soloists Natalya Romaniw, Victoria

Simmonds, Paul Nilon and Matthew Rose

Beethoven Egmont incidental music, op.84

Long interval

Schoenberg A Survivor from Warsaw, op.46

Beethoven Symphony No.9 in D minor, op.125

P e r f o r m a n c e d i a ry 2 0 1 4

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Friday

06 June

6.20pm

Beethoven

Friday

27 June

6.45pm

Janácˇ ek

Saturday

07 June

6.15pm

Offenbach

Saturday

28 June

6.20pm

Beethoven

Sunday

08 June

6.20pm

Beethoven

Tuesday

1 July

6.20pm

Beethoven

Monday

09 June

6.15pm

Offenbach*

Thursday

3 July

6.15pm

Offenbach

Saturday

14 June

6.15pm

Offenbach

Friday

4 July

6.45pm

Janácˇ ek

Sunday

15 June

6.20pm

Beethoven

Saturday

5 July

6.20pm

Beethoven*

Wednesday

18 June

6.20pm

Beethoven

Sunday

6 July

see page 9

Peace in our Time?

Thursday

19 June

6.15pm

Offenbach

Tuesday

8 July

6.45pm

Janácˇ ek*

Saturday

21 June

6.20pm

Beethoven

Wednesday

9 July

6.15pm

Offenbach

Sunday

22 June

6.45pm

Janácˇ ek

Thursday

10 July

6.20pm

Beethoven

Tuesday

24 June

6.15pm

Offenbach

Saturday

12 July

6.45pm

Janácˇ ek

Wednesday

25 June

6.45pm

Janácˇ ek

Sunday

13 July

6.20pm

Beethoven

Thursday

26 June

6.15pm

Offenbach

* Pre-performance Talk

Evening performances end by 10.15pm.

S e at i n g P l a n a n d T i c k e t P r i c e s

£160

£180

6 JULY ONLY Premium*

£230

BOX

REAR STALLS

£102

£112

£112

UPPER STALLS

£127

£137

£137

MIDDLE STALLS

£140

£150

£150

FRONT STALLS

£160

£180

£135

£145

ORCHESTRA STALLS inc. wheelchair spaces (W)

UPPER TERRACE

EXIT

Premium*

£230

EXIT

£180 BOX

BOX

BOX

REAR STALLS

TERRACE

WEEKENDS

TERRACE

BOXES

WEEKDAYS

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UPPER STALLS MIDDLE STALLS

FRONT STALLS

£180 EXIT

£145

*Please enter Premium in the relevant section of the booking form. There are a limited number of Premium tickets available which include a tour of the Getty Library on a timed ticket basis. See page 9.

All ticket prices include a suggested, but non-obligatory, donation of £65.

EXIT

W

ORCHESTRA STALLS STAGE

W

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B OOKIN G IN F ORMATION

Friends of Garsington Opera If you would like to be included in the first priority booking allocation, please return booking forms by post or email by Monday 9 December 2013. You are sent confirmation of your ticket allocation in mid-January.

Members who miss the first booking deadline can still be included in the Friends' second priority booking allocation by returning a booking form by Friday 31 January 2014.

Affiliate Members' priority booking opens at 12.01am online and by post or email on Monday 3 March 2014.

GO≤35 Members' priority booking opens at 12.01am online on Monday 24 March 2014.

Public Booking opens at 12.01am online and by telephone from 9.30am on Monday 14 April 2014.

Information about reserving picnic tents, details of the train transfer service, and the 2014 menu and booking form for Jamie Oliver’s Fabulous Feasts is sent with your tickets.

B OOKIN G IN F ORMATION

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Managing your booking • Please give as many alternative dates as possible and indicate on your booking form if you will accept pairs or single seats.

• If you would like seats allocated next to friends, please ensure that both booking applications are submitted together, in the same envelope.

• Please keep a copy of your booking form for your records.

Accessibility Please inform us at the time of booking if you or your guests have restricted mobility or special requirements. We have a number of seats that are accessible without stairs via a lift to the first level of the auditorium. There are also a limited number of parking spaces solely for the use of patrons with tickets for wheelchair spaces. These must be booked in advance through the Box Office who will issue a parking permit.

Conditions of sale Tickets are not exchangeable. Tickets may be accepted for re-sale after all other tickets have been sold; however, re-sale cannot be guaranteed. Please check with the Box Office before returning tickets. Re-sales will be subject to a £10 per ticket administration fee. All tickets are sold subject to the right of the management to cancel or alter the published operas, dates or casts.

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P r e - s e a s o n i n s i g h t ta l k s

Discover more about our three productions; Fidelio, Vert-Vert and The Cunning Little Vixen. Led by operatic experts with members of the cast, creative teams and singers from the Garsington Opera Chorus, these special illustrated talks provide an insight into the historical and musical context of the works. Each talk lasts approximately 60 minutes.

Roderick Swanston with members of the cast: Beethoven’s Fidelio Wednesday 30 April - 6.30pm Leonard Wolfson Auditorium, Wolfson College, Linton Road, Oxford OX2 6UD David Parry with members of the cast: Offenbach’s Vert-Vert Tuesday 6 May - 6.30pm 49 Queen’s Gate Terrace, London SW7 5PN Gavin Plumley with members of the cast: Janácˇek’s The Cunning Little Vixen Wednesday 21 May - 6.30pm Central London venue, to be confirmed Tickets £15 (to include light refreshment)

P r e - p e r f o r m a n c e ta l k s

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Pre-performance talks in the Opera Pavilion by members of the artistic and production teams, designed to enhance your experience and understanding of the opera to follow. We aim for 45 minutes of informal discussion and debate, centred on the creative processes of the productions, with questions from the floor.

Offenbach’s Vert-Vert Pre-performance Talk Monday 9 June - 4.45pm Tickets £12 Peace in our Time? Symposium Saturday 5 July - 4.15pm A discussion by a distinguished panel of guests exploring the themes expressed in Fidelio including tyranny, justice and freedom from oppression. For further information, see page 8.

Tickets £15 Janácˇek’s The Cunning Little Vixen Pre-performance Talk Tuesday 8 July - 5.15pm Tickets £12 The Box Office will only book Pre-Performance Talks if opera tickets are allocated on the same day.

“It is hard to imagine a more idyllic outdoor setting for an opera production than Wormsley�

The New York Times

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AN EVENIN G AT G ARSIN G TON OPERA We invite you to arrive from 3.30pm in order to enjoy the stunning gardens and grounds of the Wormsley Estate before performances begin in the early evening. Take a short trip in a vintage bus to the 18th century Walled Garden, enjoy traditional afternoon tea overlooking the cricket pitch, admire the spectacular views across the deer park and lake from our Champagne Bar, or stroll around the Opera Garden.

Performances begin between 6.15pm and 6.45pm depending on the length of the opera, with a long dinner interval lasting approximately 85 minutes. During this time you can dine in our restaurant marquees overlooking the famous cricket ground or enjoy a picnic (either your own, or one provided by Jamie Oliver’s Fabulous Feasts) by the lake, in the garden or in one of our tents. Complimentary scout porters with trolleys and chauffeured golf buggies are available to help when needed.

Performances resume as the evening light begins to fade and end by 10.15pm, when candles and the moon’s reflection in the lake provide a magical finale to your evening.

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DININ G AT G ARSIN G TON OPERA Dine in the Restaurant

Enjoy a delicious, traditional three-course dinner provided by Jamie Oliver’s Fabulous Feasts in our beautifully dressed restaurant marquees overlooking the famous cricket ground with extensive views of the Chilterns.

Bring a Picnic

Settle on a rug by the lake, take in the panoramic views from the Upper Terrace, or enjoy a private party with garden views in the Granary. You can reserve a private picnic tent in the deer park or join in the festive mood in one of our shared tents with tables and chairs freely available. You are welcome to bring your own picnic or ask Jamie Oliver’s Fabulous Feasts to provide one for you.

Pre-performance

Take afternoon tea by the cricket pitch, or enjoy champagne and canapés at the Champagne Bar overlooking the deer park.

The Island Pavilion and Cricket Pavilion are available for exclusive use. Price on request.

Menus, wine lists and booking details are sent with tickets in January-February.

G ETTIN G TO G ARSIN G TON OPERA By car: Wormsley is within easy reach of Oxford and only 50 minutes from central London, just off the M40 at junction 5 for Stokenchurch (see map).

A404

High Wycombe

A40 M40

4 3

A40

2 Marlow

LON

A355

5

Amersham Rd

Stokenchurch

A404

RD

M4

FO

Ibstone

By coach: The Oxford Tube provides a frequent coach service from London and Oxford to Lewknor, ten minutes from Wormsley. Taxi transfers are required.

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10

OX

Amersham

A4

A40

By train: Trains to High Wycombe from London Marylebone take as little as 25 minutes. Patrons can book seats on a transfer bus service, which meets one train at High Wycombe station before each performance. Transfer buses must be booked in advance. Details are sent with tickets in January-February.

Princes Risborough

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DO

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Garsington Opera at West Green House

GO≤35 Membership

Garsington Opera Education

As part of the West Green House Opera season, singers from our Young Artists Programme will present a revival of our much enjoyed 2013 production of Humperdinck’s Hänsel und Gretel on 26 and 27 July. Described as “a delicious piece of confectionery…simply terrific” (The Guardian), director Olivia Fuchs’ refreshing interpretation of this magical opera, conducted by

After a successful launch in 2013, we have extended our GO≤35 Scheme for 2014, allowing more young people, aged 35 and under, to join us this season. For an annual cost of just £10, GO≤35 members benefit from priority booking on two tickets at £30 each, a glass of complimentary champagne, free train transfers from High Wycombe, a

Following the triumph of our first Community Opera Road Rage in 2013, GO Education launches another debut in 2014. OperaFirst is a specially designated performance of The Cunning Little Vixen for a first time young audience, with whom the education team will be working throughout the year, introducing them to the art of opera.

John Andrews, will feature a cast of the brightest and best of our young singers. Situated in North Hampshire, West Green House is renowned for having one of England’s finest manor house gardens. For more information and tickets, visit www.westgreenhouse.co.uk.

half-price programme and invitations to preseason events in London. For more information about becoming a GO≤35 member visit our website www.garsingtonopera.org or call us on 01865 361636.

All details correct at the time of going to print.

Photographers: Sven Arnstein, Marcus Dawes, Mike Hoban, Johnny Langridge, John Snelling, Colin Willoughby.

Graphic Designers: Franks and Franks

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H채nsel und Gretel 2013

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Die Entf端hrung 2013

G a r s i ng t on O p e r a at Wo r m s l e y Administration Office: The Old Garage, The Green, Great Milton, Oxford OX44 7NP Telephone 01865 361636 Email office@garsingtonopera.org www.garsingtonopera.org