The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny - Programme

COVER

BERTOLT BRECHT Q KURT WEILL

A ROUGH MAGIC AND OPERA THEATRE COMPANY CO-PRODUCTION

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Rough Magic Theatre Company 18 South Great George’s Street, Dublin 2 01 671 9278 www.roughmagic.ie Executive Artistic Director Executive Producer Producer/Artist Development Dramaturg Associate Directors Accountant Interns

Lynne Parker Diego Fasciati Clare Robertson Maureen White Sophie Motley Matt Torney Katy Falkingham Sinead Kearns Megan Prangley

Board of Directors Marie Redmond (Chair) William Earley Anne Fogarty Roy Foster Darragh Kelly Stephen McManus Sheila O’Donnell Barry O’Neill Jill Percival Gerry Smyth Advisory Council Siobhán Bourke Anne Byrne Catherine Donnelly Declan Hughes Darragh Kelly Pauline McLynn Hélène Montague Martin Murphy Arthur Riordan Stanley Townsend

Opera Theatre Company Temple Bar Music Centre, Curved Street, Temple Bar, Dublin 2 01 679 4962 www.opera.ie Executive Executive Director Artistic Director Marketing Manager Marketing Assistant

Rosemary Collier Fergus Sheil Sorcha Carroll Siobhan O’Donnell

Board of Directors Virginia Kerr (Chair) Hugh Tinney Laurie Cearr Tim Kerr Joe Murphy Brendan Donnelly Yvonne Shields Gaby Smyth Patrons - Young Associate Artists Programme Dame Ann Murray Brenda Hurley Young Associate Artists Programme Killian Farrell Conductor Margaret Bridge Soprano Lynda-Jane Nelson Soprano Maria Hughes Mezzo-Soprano Kelly Lonergan Soprano Gemma Ní Bhriain Mezzo-Soprano Gyula Nagy Baritone Cormac Lawlor Bass-Baritone

ADVANCE Artists Muireann Ahern Olwen Fouéré Sonya Kelly Seán Mac Erlaine Independent Producer in Residence Jen Coppinger SEEDS Artists Cait Corkery Daniel Forde Shane Mac an Bhaird Cameron Macaulay Zoe Ni Riordain

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The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny Opera in Three Acts

By Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht in the English translation by David Drew and Michael Geliot By arrangement with European American Music Corporation and Universal Edition A.G., Vienna

Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny was ďŹ rst performed on 9 March 1930 at the Neues Theater in Leipzig This production premiered at the Olympia Theatre Dublin, 13 June 2014 with further performances on 15, 17, 19, 21 & 22 June

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Sky Arts Welcome Note

W

e are absolutely delighted to be partnering with Rough Magic Theatre Company and Opera Theatre Company on this extraordinary production of the iconic Brecht / Weil opera The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny.

Our vibrant arts and cultural sector is one of the many things that makes me proud to be Irish. It is a privilege to be able to support the sector, and in particular have the opportunity to work with these two outstanding organisations, through the Sky Arts Ignition initiative which supports leading arts organisations.

Alongside the award of €230,000 of funding to enable the production, we have also worked creatively together to bring Mahagonny to a wider audience, a key aim of the Sky Arts Ignition project, through a groundbreaking digital project and on-air programming.

The digital project, produced by Maverick TV, is the first of its kind ever to be piloted in Ireland and aims to open the world of Mahagonny to a new audience, as well as enriching the experience of those lucky enough to enjoy the production here at the Olympia.

We invite you into an imagined virtual world at sky.com/mahagonny to follow the unfolding stories of fictional characters @kurtthefurey and @paulgallagher92. This online narrative runs in parallel to the production and, over the ensuing days, Paul and Kurt will find themselves on the fringes of key events from Brecht’s story as the body count rises and the cracks begin to show in the city’s façade. Follow the story using #OnlyInMahagonny.

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We teamed up with Coco Television who have created a stunning series of promos which are playing across Sky channels offering a glimpse into the debauched world of Mahagonny, and an exclusive behind the scenes documentary of the production will air on Sky Arts, our dedicated arts and culture channels.

Thank you for joining us and playing your own part in this wonderful production, which has seen the leading creative forces in Ireland join together to reimagine this challenging and entertaining work.

I hope you enjoy the performance. For my part, I am thrilled to see such an excellent project come to fruition and delighted that Sky Ireland was able to act as a catalyst and enabler - just one of the many ways we look to extend our positive contribution to the arts and to Ireland.

JD Buckley Managing Director Sky Ireland

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Rough Magic Theatre Company Director’s Note

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ith Mahagonny, Rough Magic crosses into the territory between epic theatre and opera pioneered by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill. Their aim was to turn the tables on their chosen artform, and this production will do literally that.

Our intention is to use the theatre itself as the environment. We are staging this opera in one of Ireland’s great remaining music halls, the Olympia Theatre.

Since its foundation in 1984 Rough Magic has built an organization based on three core values; artistic excellence, an egalitarian approach to the creative ensemble and an ethic based on pluralism. The company has evolved around the principle that we are part of a world culture that celebrates Irish identity diverse in nature and outward looking in its vision.

A continuous strand of our work has been the reinterpretation of classics from Shakespeare in the 16th century to Brecht in the 20th. This has included many of our most successful productions, such as The Caucasian Chalk Circle, The Silver Tassie, The Taming of the Shrew, Don Carlos, Lady Windermere’s Fan, Phaedra and Peer Gynt. In each case the piece has been viewed from an unusual angle; in many of these productions live music, composed for the company, was an essential element. It is particularly exciting to take the company into territory that extends those boundaries to a full orchestral piece.

Mahagonny peers into the dystopian abyss, a dream become nightmare. First staged in 1930, it was banned by the Nazis, who feared Brecht’s unflinching examination of the desirability of decadence, and the jazzrich nature of Weill’s exhilarating score. These two ground-breaking artists are an inspiration to a company that is consistently drawn to mix theatrical mischief with the examination of human history. In the context of Weimar Germany the piece has one kind of resonance; in post-boom Dublin it has another.

Rough Magic regularly performs at Project Arts Centre, and tours in Ireland, the UK and beyond, winning many awards.

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Our commitment to artist development is rooted to our artistic identity. The pioneering SEEDS programme, begun in 2001 is now the benchmark for professional development of emerging Irish talent; in 2011 we launched ADVANCE, a parallel programme for established artists. The company commissions new Irish writing, such as recent award-winners The House Keeper and Jezebel, and the landmark musical Improbable Frequency. Our productions include over 50 Irish premieres and the debuts of many theatre-makers.

Through mentoring, resource-sharing and Production Support of many individual artists and emerging companies, Rough Magic is active across the full spectrum of creative practice.

Our aim is firstly to make great theatre, but also to advance and contribute to the cultural life of Ireland. We continue to put the artist at the centre of our production and development strategies. We also aim to strengthen our position as a national company and to form supportive partnerships with organisations and individuals who share our sense of the unique value of art, particularly theatre, in offering a new vision for the nation. In its thirtieth year, Rough Magic is delighted to go into partnership with Opera Theatre Company and Sky Arts to reach a new audience with a 20th century masterpiece.

Lynne Parker Artistic Director Rough Magic Theatre Company

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Opera Theatre Company Welcome Note

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n behalf of Opera Theatre Company I’m delighted to welcome you to the Olympia Theatre for this remarkable production of The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny by Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht. This production arises from an innovative collaboration between Rough Magic Theatre Company and ourselves, made possible by support from Sky Arts Ignition and the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon.

Opera Theatre Company is passionate about making opera vibrant, thought-provoking and accessible. This production of Mahagonny fits well with this vision. From its very conception this has been no ordinary opera production; director Lynne Parker, together with the rest of the creative team, has developed a new way for audiences to experience opera. The reconfiguration of the Olympia Theatre has been central to that concept, immediately signalling that this will not be a familiar experience.

To my mind, Mahagonny is startlingly relevant to today’s post Celtic Tiger Ireland. Although the opera was conceived in the 1930s Weimar Republic, sadly, many of the moral challenges it presents us have not yet been understood and answered by our generation. Corruption, greed, excesses, sexual exploitation and a complete lack of empathy are still issues that afflict our society. In many ways we casually turn a blind eye to them in everyday life.

Musically the score is bawdy, entertaining and subversive. Weill creates a completely new sound world, totally eschewing the excesses of German romanticism, which were lingering into the 20th Century when he was composing this.

He opts instead for the sounds of nightclubs and cabaret, warping these influences with a unique nightmarish character that drives the score forward with remarkable intensity.

Mahagonny is composed very much as an opera; it calls for a large orchestra and chorus with major singing roles for the principals. I’m delighted that we have brought together a wonderful team. Our cast includes some of the very best Irish singers, we have a large chorus and full orchestra, while behind the scenes an array of technical staff has made this production possible. I’d like to pay tribute to all the members of the creative team, performers and crew for their dedication and professionalism in making this unique production.

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Opera Theatre Company relishes the challenges involved in mounting large-scale operas in unusual locations. We have previously performed site-specific operas in the City Hall Dublin, Kilmainham Gaol and Valentia Island.

Tonight, even though we are in a theatre, it’s not a theatre as we know it! Projects like this sit alongside our touring programme to venues in every corner of Ireland.

OTC’s mission has been sustained over many years by a passionate and committed board of directors. This will be the last show produced during the tenure of our chair, Virginia Kerr, who steps down shortly after ten years dedicated service to the company. I’d like to take the opportunity of thanking Virginia for her time, expertise and energy and for the central role that she has played in OTC’s development.

We are honoured to have worked with Rough Magic Theatre Company to make this production possible, we thank our funders and most especially we hope that you our audience will enjoy the performance..

Fergus Sheil Artistic Director Opera Theatre Company

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Mahagonny: Cultural Context

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Bertolt Brecht

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hen Bertolt Brecht started to work on Mahagonny in 1927, he could not have known that his Marxist parable of the rise and fall of capitalism would have a special resonance when it finally premiered in Leipzig in 1930. Brecht and the young composer, Kurt Weill, set out to produce Mahagonny at a time when the Weimar Republic finally seemed to have recovered from the multi-faceted crisis that had been prompted by Germany’s defeat in the Great War. Between 1923 and 1929, Germany’s republican future looked fairly bright and many international observers celebrated the country’s economic and political stabilization, as well as its artistic and scientific modernity. Brecht himself, however, remained convinced that underneath the façade of recovery in 1920s Germany lay corruption.

More so even than Brecht’s famous Threepenny Opera (1928), the content of Mahagonny reflects that conviction. Although set in America, the city of Mahagonny represents a ‘typical’ example of the final stages of capitalism – a place in which power rests with the wealthy and the law is in the hands of criminals. As a city far from civilization, the true nature of capitalism is not hidden by a thin layer of bourgeois respectability, but rather shows its true, ugly face: life is reduced to the pursuit of wealth and love has become a commodity. Brecht’s critique of capitalism culminates in Act 3, when the criminals Begbick, Fatty, and Moses, now in charge of the city’s legal system, proclaim that “in the whole human race / there is no greater criminal / than a man without money”.

When Mahagonny premiered in 1930, Brecht’s critique of capitalism had an unforseen resonance. Only a few months earlier, on 29 October 1929, the Great Depression had begun with the crash of Wall Street, when over 16 million shares changed hands at knock-down prices. The effects of the Depression were keenly felt across the globe, but the crisis hit Germany particularly badly, because it was dependent on American loans that were immediately recalled after ‘Black Friday’. Within a few months, there were more than 8 million unemployed in Germany (out of a workforce of 20 million), creating whole communities of men and women resigned, through joblessness, to a life devoid of purpose.

A crisis of such proportions had serious political implications, too. Support for the Communist Party increased in response to what seemed to be a terminal crisis of capitalism. The rise of communism, in turn, played into Hitler’s hands, because many Germans believed that Nazism was the only political force capable of stopping communism in its tracks. In the 1930 general elections, Hitler’s party increased its seats in parliament from 12 to 107.

Against this backdrop, Brecht’s opera polarized its first audiences in 1930, with Nazis protesting outside the theatre and communist theatre critics rejoicing. The Nazis banned Mahagonny as soon as they came to power.

Hitler despised cultural modernism and viewed communism as the polar opposite of fascism.

Brecht stood for both. As soon as Hitler had been appointed to the Chancellorship, Brecht fled Germany and spent the following years in exile where he wrote some of his most famous plays. Although he eventually returned to Germany, becoming a celebrated star in the GDR, he never saw Mahagonny performed again. It was only in the 1960s, several years after Brecht’s death in 1956, that the opera returned to the stage.

Robert Gerwarth is Professor of Modern History at University College Dublin.

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Jezebel f

i

By Mark Cantan Directed by Lynne Parker

A clever comedy about the dumb consequences of hot sex meeting cold statistics.

“One of the most enjoyable night’s theatre I’ve had all year — not in recent memory has there been so perfect a comedy on the Irish stage” +++++ Entertainment.ie

Starring: Peter Daly, Margaret McAuliffe and Valerie O’Connor

“Brilliantly bizarre” ++++ Irish Times

Soho Theatre London

West Cork Fit-Up Festival 5 – 10 August 2014 — www.westcorkfit-upfestival.com

12 – 31 August 2014 — www.sohotheatre.com www.roughmagic.ie

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Kurt Weill – from Berlin to Broadway

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Kurt Weill

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he 20th century chronicles only very few composers who focused their creative intent as persistently on musical theatre and its transformation as Kurt Weill. Born on 2 March 1900 in Dessau (about 100 km southwest of Berlin) as the third of four children, he first received musical instruction from his father, the cantor of the local synagogue, and started composing early in life. His first “spark” in the direction of the stage occurred as soon as 1915, when Weill became acquainted with operatic work at the famous Herzogliches Hoftheater. Important practical experience ensued shortly thereafter. In 1919-1920, he worked as co-répétiteur in Dessau, and after that as bandmaster at the city of Lüdenscheid’s civic theatre. Here, as a young man, he honed his craft and decided definitively “that musical theatre will become my true preserve”. As Ferruccio Busoni’s top student from 1921 to 1923 in Berlin, Weill was significantly influenced by him. In 1925, he made his debut on the operatic stage with his one-acter Der Protagonist (The Protagonist).

The libretto was written by Georg Kaiser, who was at the time Germany’s most successful playwright. Two further one-act operas followed – Royal Palace and Der Zar läßt sich photographieren (The tzar has his photograph taken) – which marks the first time Weill integrated the patterns and instruments of popular music into his scores.

He met Bertolt Brecht in April 1927.

There must have been an immediate spark of mutual interest, as well as a feeling of professional compatibility, because this was the beginning of an intense, nearly four-year collaboration. Out of this resulted Mahagonny Songspiel, Threepenny Opera and their joint magnum opus, the epic opera Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny (The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny) – new kinds of musical theatre that went on to exert a heavy influence on the development of the genre in the 20th century. Weill remarked on the Mahagonny opera: “It’s no longer enough just to insert stage props or characters from modern life into existing forms of musical drama. Contemporary material has to conform to a corresponding form of musical theatre.”

In putting Brecht’s texts to song, Weill’s

entirely innovative, captivating musical style – in which the relatively few tones of almost spoken stanzas are followed by the belting, uniquely beautiful arcs of melody that were his catchy refrains – became one of the stunning achievements of the century. Moreover, Weill’s wife Lotte Lenya, a matchless performer, took to the stage. There were two issues that led to the end of Weill and Brecht’s successful collaboration in 1931 (apart from the postscript Die sieben Todsünden (The seven deadly sins) in Paris in 1933): the ancient battle amongst opera makers over which took primacy: music or libretto; and Brecht’s turn to Marxism, which wasn’t to Weill’s taste.

The composer continued to work on long-form opera, resulting in Die Bürgschaft (The Pledge) in 1931-1932, followed by the dramatic opera Der Silbersee (The Silver Lake) at the end of 1932. At the time the latter’s premiere took place, Adolf Hitler had already spent two weeks in power. The Reichstag burned down on 27 February 1933; the final performance of Silbersee took place on 4 March. With that, Weill’s music was silenced in Germany for the next 12 years. Instead, the Nazis thereafter made the composer the preferred object – if not the figurehead – of their slander and vilification of all progressive artistic work during the Weimar Republic. By

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this time Weill had received several warnings, so he fled to Paris at the end of March. There he spent a full two years of intensive work on various projects before he and Lenya went to New York in 1935. They both broke their ties with Germany – they regarded the US not as temporary host but their new homeland.

Consequently, Weill decided to focus his efforts to innovate musical theatre on the American arts sector. His ability rapidly to assimilate an unfamiliar musical idiom stood him in good stead. In 1938, Weill composed Knickerbocker Holiday in collaboration with Maxwell Anderson.

It was his first important contribution to the then ongoing metamorphosis of the superficial musical comedy into the genuinely American

genre of the well-crafted musical play. Music historians ascribe the same status to Lady in the Dark (1941) and One Touch of Venus (1943).

Weill took yet another step on the way to modernisation in 1945-1946 with the Broadway opera Street Scene and, in 1949, with the musical tragedy Lost in the Stars.

On 2 March, full of new plans, Kurt Weill celebrated his 50th birthday. Only a month later, on 3 April, he died unexpectedly in New York.

Jürgen Schebera English translation by Christine Madden

PHOTO CAPTION

Mahagonny rehearsal photos by Pat Redmond

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Mahagonny Corporate Supporters

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Benjamin Britten September 2014 Wexford. Cork.

Dublin. Dundalk.

www.irishyouthopera.ie

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63rd Festival

22 October – 2 November 2014

“You come away believing you’ve witnessed a masterpiece that posterity unjustly rejected.”

— Andrew Clark, Financial Times

OPERAS

SALOMÉ

Antoine Mariotte

DON BUCEFALO

Antonio Cagnoni

EUROPEAN PREMIERE

SILENT NIGHT Kevin Puts

OTHER EVENTS

Recitals / Concerts / ShortWorks / Film / Lectures

BOOKING NOW OPEN To book tickets and for details on how to become a Friend visit

www.wexfordopera.com

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The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny Synopsis Act I Fatty “the Procurator”, Trinity Moses and the widow Leokadja Begbick are fugitives from justice and they find themselves marooned in a desolate no-man’s land. Begbick announces the foundation of a paradise city called Mahagonny where they will make money by luring men who are seeking ease. The city starts progressing: Jenny Smith arrives with six other girls and sings the Alabama Song. Fatty and Moses entice frustrated men to Mahagonny. Four lumberjacks — Jimmy Mahoney, Jakob Schmidt, Bank Account Billy and Alaska Wolf Joe — head for the city singing Off to Mahagonny. The widow Begbick, who is aware of their personal tastes, receives them. Jenny captivates Jimmy by singing the Havana Song.

The city seems to be in crisis and Begbick decides to leave; Fatty reminds her that the police are still looking for them. Jimmy wants to abandon Mahagonny because he finds it too tame, but his three friends convince him to stay.

In front of the Rich Man Hotel all is at peace.

Suddenly a hurricane threatens the city.

Everyone is fearful except Jimmy who seizes the moment and proclaims his philosophy, according to which nothing is prohibited. Mahagonny sings of its recovered joy as the hurricane approaches.

Act II The hurricane by passes Mahagonny. Afterwards the city thrives and the reigning slogan of selfindulgence is “Do it!”, a philosophy whose precepts are Eating, Sex, Boxing and Boozing.

Everyone starts to eat and Jakob gorges until

he dies. The men line up to make love, singing The Mandalay Song. Jimmy and Jenny sing the Crane Duet. There is a boxing match in which Joe fights Moses and Jimmy bets all his money on his friend who dies during the match. He orders rounds for all and runs up an enormous bill.

Begbick demands payment but Jimmy is broke.

His friends refuse to help him out. Jimmy is arrested while everyone else keeps on having a good time.

Act III Chained and alone, Jimmy rebels against the break of the new day. The trial begins: Moses is the prosecutor, Fatty the defence attorney and Begbick the judge. First comes the case of Toby Higgins, who is accused of murder but gets off scot-free after handing Begbick a fat bribe. Jimmy tries again to get Billy to loan him money but his friend refuses. During the trial Billy defends him; however Jenny presents herself as a plaintiff. Jimmy is first found guilty of the lesser crimes of being an accomplice in Joe’s murder, disturbing the peace, seducing Jenny and singing illegal songs, but for having no money his death sentence is pronounced. Jenny, Begbick, Fatty, Moses and Toby Higgins sing the Benares Song, longing for a better city. Before the execution, Jimmy and Jenny say farewell. The penultimate scene is a representation of God’s enraged appearance in Mahagonny. An apocalyptic march theme accompanies the end of the city; chaos and despair reign everywhere.

Mahagonny rehearsal photos by Pat Redmond

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Cast Anne Marie Gibbons Julian Hubbard Claudia Boyle John Molloy Julian Tovey Ross Scanlon Eamonn Mulhall Christopher Cull Andrew Boushell

Begbick Jimmy Jenny Trinity Moses Alaska Wolf Joe Fatty the Procurator Jakob Schmidt Bank Account Billy Toby Higgins

Darragh Kelly

Narrator

Jenny’s Girls Rachel Croash Sarah Shine Jean Wallace Laura Murphy Gemma Ní Bhriain Dominica Williams

Soprano Soprano Soprano Mezzo-soprano Mezzo-soprano Mezzo-soprano

Creative Team Lynne Parker David Brophy Aedín Cosgrove Consolata Boyle

Director Conductor Production Designer Costume Designer

Hélène Montague Killian Farrell Aoife O’Sullivan

Associate Director Assistant Conductor Répétiteur

Male Chorus Conor Breen David Lynn Paul O’Connor Richard Shaffrey Richard Bridge Fearghal Curtis Peter O’Donoghue Rory Musgrave Gerry Noonan Ciaran Olohan David Scott Tristan Caldwell Gyula Nagy Kevin Neville Shokri Raoof

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Tenor Tenor Tenor Tenor Tenor Tenor Tenor Bass Bass Bass Bass Bass Bass Bass Bass

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The Orchestra of Ireland

Production

Orchestra Manager: Joe Csibi Leader: Fionnuala Hunt Violin – Anita Vedres, Lynda O Connor, Paul O’Hanlon, Roisin Walters, Aoife Dowdall Viola – Beth McNinch, Robin Panter, Lisa Dowdall, Karen Dervan Cello – Gerald Peregrine, Ailbhe McDonagh, Peggy Nolan, Michelle Mason Double Bass – Dominic Dudley, Maeve Sheil Acoustic Bass Guitar – Dominic Dudley

Rob Furey Paula Tierney Stephanie Ryan Justin Murphy Monica Ennis Nikkola Connor Clodagh Deegan Patsy Giles Barbara McCarty Barry Madden Zoe Ni Riordain Cait Corkery Daniel Forde Cameron Macaulay Christine Monk Kip Carroll Ros Kavanagh Pat Redmond Mark Cantan Brendan Foreman

Flute – Riona O’Duinnin, Mairead English Piccolo – Mairead English Oboe – Ruby Ashley Clarinet – Conor Sheil Soprano Saxophone/Clarinet – Kenneth Edge Alto & Baritone Saxophone – Kevin Hannifan Tenor Saxophone – Daren Hatch Bassoon – John Hearne, Cliona Warren Contra Bassoon – Cliona Warren French Horn – Liam Duffy, Brian Daly Trumpet – Niall O Sullivan, David Collins, Christopher Dowdall Trombone – Karl Ronan, Paul Frost Tuba – Alex Kidston Percussion – Noel Eccles Timpani – Bernard Reilly Piano – Aoife O Sullivan & Vincent Lynch Banjo & Guitar – Jimmy Smyth Autoharp – Karl Breen Bandoneon/Accordian – Dermot Dunne

Performance Timing Act 1 - 1 hour Interval - 20 minutes Acts 2 & 3 - 1 hour 20 mins

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Production Manager Stage Director Stage Manager Stage Manager Wardrobe Supervisor Wardrobe Supervisor Wardrobe Mistress Hair & Make-up Wardrobe Assistant Chief Electrician Directing Assistant Design Assistant Sound Design Assistant Sound Design Assistant Publicist Pre-Production Photographs Production Photographs Rehearsal Photographs Graphic Design & Video Poster & Programme Design

Thanks to Michelle & all at Liffey Trust, Abbey Stores.

Denis Clohessy. Darragh Doyle. Lesley Garrett.

Darragh Kelly. Chloe O’Connor. The Liquor Rooms.

The Ark. Imelda Dervin & Randall Shannon Arts Council. David Parnell & Jocelyn Clarke Arts Council.

Stuart McLoughlin, Rowena Neville and Andrew Hetherington at Business to Arts. Alyssa Bonic, Freya Murray, Joel Bradley, Phil Edgar-Jones, James Hunt, Barbara Lee and Rebecca Dicks at Sky Arts.

J.D. Buckley, Mark Deering, Niamh McCarrrick, James Elms, Sinead O’Mahony and Aideen Tomkins at Sky Ireland. Claire McArdle and Nick Lockey at Maverick TV. Linda Cullen, Anna Nolan, Zlata Filipovic and Diarmuid Goggins at COCO TV. Mechtild Manus, Barbara Ebert and Heidrun Rottke at Goethe-Institut Irland. Extra Special Thanks to Fearga Doherty and all at the Olympia Theatre.

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LYNNE PARKER Director Lynne is Artistic Director and co-founder of Rough Magic. Productions for the company include: The Critic, Travesties, The House Keeper, Peer Gynt, Phaedra, Don Carlos (Irish Times Best Production 2007), The Taming of the Shrew (Best Production 2006), Improbable Frequency (Best Production, Best Director, 2004), Copenhagen (Best Production 2002), Sodome, My Love, Three Days of Rain, The Sugar Wife, Spokesong, Pentecost, Northern Star, Hidden Charges, Down Onto Blue, Lady Windermere’s Fan, Digging for Fire, Love and a Bottle (Bank of Ireland/Arts Show Award), Danti-Dan, New Morning, I Can’t Get Started, The Way of the World, The Country Wife, Decadence, Top Girls.

Other Theatre includes – The Sanctuary Lamp, Down the Line, The Trojan Women, The Doctor’s Dilemma, Tartuffe, Heavenly Bodies, The Shape of Metal (Abbey Theatre); The Drawer Boy (Galway Arts Festival); Lovers (Druid), Bernarda Alba, Me and My Friend (Charabanc); Catchpenny Twist (Tinderbox); Bold Girls (7:84 Scotland); The Shadow of A Gunman (Gate Theatre); The Clearing (Bush Theatre); Playboy of the Western World, Silver Tassie (Almeida Theatre); Playhouse Creatures (Old Vic); Importance of Being Earnest (West Yorkshire Playhouse); Love Me?! (Corn Exchange), Comedy of Errors (RSC); Olga, Shimmer (Traverse Theatre); Only the Lonely (Birmingham Rep); Le Voix Humaine (Opera Theatre Company); A Streetcar Named Desire (Opera Ireland); The Drunkard, Benefactors (B*spoke); The Girl Who Forgot to Sing Badly (The Ark/Theatre Lovett); Macbeth (Lyric Theatre); The Cunning Little Vixen, Albert Herring (RIAM). Associate Artist of Charabanc Theatre Company. Lynne was awarded the Irish Times Special Tribute Award in 2008 and an Honorary Doctorate by Trinity College Dublin in 2010.

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DAVID BROPHY Conductor A former Principal Conductor of the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, David’s career, while primarily based in Ireland, has seen him perform in many parts of Europe, Africa, America and Canada. Following studies in Ireland, England and Holland, he was appointed apprentice conductor with the National Chamber Choir of Ireland and subsequently became the first appointee as assistant conductor with the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland.

David has collaborated with many internationally acclaimed soloists, among them, Tasmin Little, Barry Douglas, Willard White, Lesley Garret, Sir James Galway, Lang Lang, Danielle de Niese, Nicola Benedetti and Chloë Hanslip. He has conducted in the US with the Valdosta Symphony Orchestra and the Naples Philharmonic, in Spain with Orquesta Nacional Clásica de Andorra and Orquesta Sinfónica de Galicia, and at home with all major Irish orchestras. Recent appearances overseas have included performances at New York’s Lincoln Centre with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and at London’s Barbican Centre as part of their Silent Film & Live Music series alongside his most recent debut with the Royal Ballet Sinfonia in the Fabulous Beast Stravinsky double-bill (The Rite of Spring and Petrushka) at Sadler’s Wells.

His work with specialist new music ensembles, among them Vox 21 and Crash Ensemble, has led to numerous premieres including the Irish premiere of Steve Reich’s Music for Eighteen Musicians and Andre Previn’s A Streetcar Named Desire, alongside recent world premieres of arrangements by Nico Muhly for Iarla Ó Lionáird.

David’s operatic work has led to acclaimed partnerships with Lyric Opera Productions, Opera Theatre Company, Opera Ireland, Glasthule Opera and NI Opera, while he recently made his debut with Ballet Ireland for their production of The Nutcracker.

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Palace of Versailles Handel Festival with The Sixteen in France, Vivaldi’s Gloria at the Sage in Gateshead, Rossini’s Stabat Mater in Dublin and the Page Salome in Adelaide with the State Opera of South Australia.

ANNE MARIE GIBBONS Begbick Anne Marie studied at DIT and the RNCM in Manchester. She subsequently joined English National Opera as company principal performing numerous roles and now enjoys a freelance career working with conductors including Christophers Cummings, Paul Daniel, John Eliot Gardner, David Parry and Mark Wigglesworth; and directors including Richard Jones, Phyllida Lloyd and David McVicar.

Opera credits include Dorabella Cosi fan tutte, Anna The Trojans, Ascanius The Trojans at Carthage, Ino Semele, Sister Mathilde The Dialogues of the Carmelites, Pitti-Sing The Mikado, Flora La Traviata, Bacchis La Belle Helene, Nero Agrippina, Kasturbai Satyagraha and Annio La clemenza di Tito with ENO; Rosmira Partenope at Les Azuriales Festival in France, the title roles in Teseo and Ariodante for English Touring Opera, La Cenerentola and Ariodante for Opera Theatre Company, 2nd Lady The Magic Flute with WNO, Pippo La gazza ladra for Opera North and David Saul at the Buxton Festival.

Concert appearances include Schumann’s Das Paradies und die Peri and Berlioz’s Les Nuits d’ete with the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, Siegrune and Gutrune in Wagner’s Ring Cycle with the National Youth Orchestra in Limerick and at Birmingham Symphony Hall, Anna Maria Stuarda at Cadogan Hall and Flora La Traviata at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, Handel’s Messiah with the Irish Baroque Orchestra in Limerick and Dublin and Bach’s Magnificat at the St Endellion Festival.

Anne Marie’s discography includes Zulma Elvida and Abra Il diluvio universal for Opera Rara, and for Chandos Sister Mathilde The Dialogues of the Carmelites and Zulma Italian Girl in Algiers. Recent credits include Bach’s St Matthew Passion with the Gabriele Consort and Players at the Lausanne Festival in Switzerland, Mozart’s Requiem in Madrid, David Saul at the

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JULIAN HUBBARD Jimmy Julian Hubbard trained at the Royal College of Music and the National Opera Studio and was generously supported by the Peter Moores Foundation and the Scottish Opera Endowment Fund.

Julian has sung with English National Opera, Scottish Opera, British Youth Opera, Opera Holland Park, Castleward Opera, Opera Theatre Company, Théatre Royal de la Monnaie, at Sadler’s Wells Theatre and the Montepulciano and Aldeburgh Festivals. He also regularly appears in concerts in a wide repertoire, including performances at the Wigmore Hall, Snape Maltings and on BBC Radio 3 IN TUNE. Recent solo concert performances include a Schumann concert series for Opera Theatre Company, Fauré and Duruflé Requiems, Brahms’ Ein Deutsches Requiem, Mendelssohn’s Elijah; Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle, Handel’s Messiah, Schubert’s Winterreise, Bach’s St Matthew Passion and Britten’s War Requiem in a semi-staged performance directed by Kim Begley. He also works extensively as a recitalist, including performances at the Wigmore Hall and Snape Maltings. Julian has recently made the transition to tenor under the tutelage of Janice Chapman and is currently working on a repertoire including Siegmund Die Walküre, Max Der Freischütz, Drum Major Wozzeck, Lensky Eugene Onegin, Don José Carmen and Pinkerton Madama Butterfly.

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Chris Stout (fiddle), Catriona McKay (Scot land) 16 - 25 September 2014 Portlaoise, For updates seeLetterkenny, Newbridge, Drogh twitter.com/MusNetIrl In My Mind – A Solo Fiddle & Film Show facebook.com/musicnetworkireland 11 – 19 October 2014 Letterkenny, Sligo, Castlebar, Dublin, Bray

MUSIC NETWORK AUTUMN TOURS 2014 Furnace Mountain (USA) Chris Stout (fiddle), Catriona McKay (Scottish harp) and Séamus Begley (accordion, voice) (Scotland/Ireland)

16th Sept 25th Sept

Irish squeeze box maestro and raconteur Séamus Begley joins Scottish duo Catriona McKay and Chris Stout in a celebration of the music of the Northern Isles.

In My Mind – A Solo Fiddle & Film Show featuring Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh (Ireland)

11th Oct 19th Oct

Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh sets off on a unique journey to the heart of Irish music. His mission: to boldly explore the beauty and humour of traditional music, aided and abetted by his 10-string fiddle, a film projector, and a host of “virtual” guests.

Furnace Mountain (USA) Direct from the Appalachian mountains, Virginian act Furnace Mountain unleash their own distinctive take on rootsy Americana, breathing new life into old-time, bluegrass and folk tunes.

Music Network and The Ark present A Most Peculiar Wintery Thing

28th Oct 04th Nov

28 October – 4 November 2014 Dublin, Bray, Drogheda, Letterkenny, Clifd Music Network and The Ark present A Most Peculiar Wintery Thing Based on a new work specially commission November- December 2014 Tour details to be announced in August.

My Cello, My Voice with Leonard Elschen 19 – 29 November 2014 Dublin, Sligo, Kilkenny, Birr, Clifden, Galw Programme to include: Bach: Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007 Hindemith: Solo Sonata, Op. 25, No. 3 Piatti: 12 Caprices, Op. 25 (No. 7. Maestos Tavener: Threnos Lombardi: Essay 3

Full touring details at www.musicnetwork.

Nov Dec

For updates see twitter.com/MusNetIrl facebook.com/musicnetworkireland

Festive warmth for all the family with a new work specially commissioned from composer Brian Irvine in our first ever children’s tour. Details to be announced in August.

My Cello, My Voice with Leonard Elschenbroich, solo cello (Germany)

19th Nov 29th Nov

Award-winning German cellist Leonard Elschenbroich offers insights into music and the life of a musician – while serving up some of the most exquisite solo cello playing you’ll hear this year.

Programme to include: - Bach: Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007 - Hindemith: Solo Sonata, Op. 25, No. 3 - Piatti: 12 Caprices, Op. 25 (No. 7. Maestoso, No. 11. Adagio - Allegro) - Tavener: Threnos - Lombardi: Essay 3

Full touring details at www.musicnetwork.ie Programme3_A.indd 20

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Future plans include Adina L’elisir d’amore (Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden) and a return to Opera di Roma to make her role debut as Gilda Rigoletto.

CLAUDIA BOYLE Jenny Claudia Boyle graduated from the Royal Irish Academy of Music with first class honours. She was subsequently an Opera Theatre Company Young Associate Artist and a member of the prestigious Young Singers Project at the 2010 Salzburg Festival.

Since Salzburg, appearances include La Comtesse La cour de Célimène (Wexford Opera Festival), Konstanze Die Entführung aus dem Serail (Komische Oper Berlin), Hanna Glawari The Merry Widow (Philharmonia Orchestra), Cunegonde Candide (Teatro dell’Opera di Roma), Konstanze (Die Entführung aus dem Serail) under Gabriele Ferro, and in Paul Curran’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

She returned to the Salzburg Festival 2011 to perform Cherubini’s Chant sur la mort de Joseph Haydn under Riccardo Muti. Previous roles for Opera Theatre Company include Bastienne Bastien & Bastienne and Norina Don Pasquale.

Recent roles include Elena Il cappello di paglia di Firenze (WFO), Lucia Lucia di Lammermoor (Danish National Opera) and Pat Nixon Nixon in China (Wide Open Opera). She also appeared as Dede A Quiet Place with Ensemble Modern.

Concerts include Messiah (Ulster Orchestra) and a special Christmas concert (RTÉ NSO).

Last season she debuted with NDR Radiophilharmonie Hannover under Eivind Gullberg Jensen and with The Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen under Paavo Järvi. Claudia’s other roles include Violetta La traviata, Adina L’elisir d’amore, Donna Anna Don Giovanni, Micaela Carmen, Musetta La bohème, Sandrina La finta giardiniera and Königin der Nacht Die Zauberflöte.

She was recipient of the Opera Prize at the 2010 Hertogenbosch International Vocal Competition and was awarded both First Prize and the Critics’ Prize at the 2012 Concorso Maria Callas Verona.

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JOHN MOLLOY Trinity Moses John Molloy has worked with many opera companies in Ireland and the UK, including NI Opera, Opera North, Opera Ireland, Lyric Opera Productions, Opera Theatre Company, D’Oyly Carte Opera and Wide Open Opera. Recent roles include Henry Kissinger Nixon in China (Wide Open Opera) and Dulcamara L’elisir d’amore (co-production NI Opera & OTC). His operatic roles include Sarastro Die Zauberflöte, Snug A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Figaro Dr Bartolo, Antonio Le nozze di Figaro, Colline La bohème, Don Alfonso Così fan tutte, Don Basilio Il barbiere di Siviglia, Zuniga Carmen, Dr Grenvil La traviata, Il Re Aida, Arthur The Lighthouse, Truelove The Rake’s Progress, Sacristan Tosca, Tiger Brown The Threepenny Opera, Cholmondeley The Yeomen of the Guard, Timur and Mandarin Turandot, Bonze Madama Butterfly, Leone Attila, High Priest Nabucco and Count Ribbing Un ballo in maschera. Recent concert appearances include the Australian premiere of Van Gogh – The Opera with Crash Ensemble at the Canberra International Festival of Music, Haydn’s Creation in The Hague with Continuo Rotterdam, and Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis with the Macau Orchestra and the chorus of Shanghai Opera House conducted

by Tibor Bogányi. John has also appeared with the RTÉ NSO, RTÉ CO, Orchestra of St Cecilia, London Gala Orchestra and the Goldberg Ensemble.

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JULIAN TOVEY Alaska Wolf Joe

ROSS SCANLON Fatty the Procurator

Julian Tovey studied at Exeter College, Oxford and at the RNCM in Manchester. He has performed in the UK and Ireland with the Royal Opera, English National Opera, Opera North, Garsington Opera, Castleward Opera and Wexford Festival Opera, in other countries in Ring Cycles with the Canadian Opera Company, Flemish Opera and L’Opera National du Rhin and in Wiesbaden and Netherlands Opera. Recent appearances have included Winston Smith in 1984 (La Scala, Milan), Orest Elektra (with Deborah Polaski and the New York Philharmonic Orchestra), Albert in the world premiere of Fabio Vacchi’s Lo Stesso Mare (Teatro Petruzzelli, Bari), the title role in Wozzeck (Theater St Gallen and Israeli Opera), Trinity Moses in The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny (Israeli Opera) and Emile in South Pacific with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra. He has worked with directors such as Robert Lepage, Anthony Minghella, John Cox, David McVicar and Peter Konwitschny and has sung, amongst others, under Lorin Maazel, Philippe Jordan, Edo de Waart and Alexander Lazarev. Julian is a lecturer at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

Originally from Bray, Ross Scanlon now studies at the Royal Academy of Music Opera School, London with singing Professor Philip Doghan.

A graduate of the DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama, Ross has a BMus first class honours degree and the DIT Michael McNamara Gold Medal for excellence in performance and was described by the Irish Times as Ireland’s “…most promising young Irish Tenor heard in years…”

Opera roles include Lurcanio Ariodante, Masino La Vera Costanza, Tamino & Monostatos The Magic Flute, Remendado Carmen, Lord Lieutenant, Master of the Rolls and Skeffington The Earl of Kildare (Irish premiere), Pierre The Wandering Scholar (Irish premiere) and Midas Midas. Ross is a former Young Associate Artist with Opera Theatre Company Dublin.

Oratorio performances include Handel’s Messiah, Alexander’s Feast and Coronation Anthems, Haydn’s Die Jahreszeiten, The Creation and Missa in Tempore Belli, Mendelssohn’s Elijah and St Paul, Stainer’s Crucifixion, Mozart’s Vesperae Solemnes de Confessore and Coronation Mass, Schubert’s Mass in B flat, Jenkins’ The Armed Man – A Mass for Peace and Goodall’s Eternal Light – A Requiem (Irish premiere). He has performed with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and Irish Philharmonic Orchestra.

Ross made his debut with the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the Barbican last year with Le théière L’enfant et les sortilèges. He recently sang the role of Hot Biscuit Slim in Paul Bunyan with Welsh National Youth Opera. Future engagements include Male Chorus The Rape of Lucretia (Irish Youth Opera). Ross gratefully acknowledges the sponsorship and support of Matthew & Sally Ferrey, the Irish Arts Council and Wicklow County Council.

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EAMONN MULHALL Jakob Schmidt

CHRISTOPHER CULL Bank Account Billy

Eamonn Mulhall trained at the Royal College of Music and the National Opera Studio in London.

His operatic engagements include the world première of James MacMillan’s Clemency (ROH Linbury, Covent Garden; Scottish Opera at the Edinburgh International Festival), Dorian Gray (Slovak National Opera), staged Messiah, After Dido and Count Almaviva The Barber of Seville (English National Opera), Sailor Tristan und Isolde (Wide Open Opera), Prince Safir in Offenbach’s Barbe bleu (Grange Park Opera), Jacquino in Fidelio and Soldier in Ullmann’s Der Kaiser von Atlantis (Opera Theatre Company) as well as Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni (Orchestra of St Cecilia) and understudying Bajazat in Handel’s Tamerlano (Scottish Opera), Lamplighter in Weinberg’s The Portrait (Opera North), Belmonte in Die Entführung aus dem Serail and Ferrando in Così fan tutte (Welsh National Opera). A frequent soloist in concert, Eamonn has sung with many of Britain and Ireland’s eminent choral societies. Highlights include Messiah at the Royal Albert Hall, Puccini’s Messa di Gloria with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and appearances with the Irish Baroque Orchestra, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Ulster Orchestra, the Irish Chamber Orchestra, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra. He has recorded Beethoven’s Irish songs, Jerome Kern’s Roberta, Victor Herbert’s Eileen and Dylan Thomas’ Under Milk Wood. Future engagements include Mariotte’s Salomé (Wexford), a return to the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra as well as appearing at the Spring International Music Festival, Prague.

Christopher Cull is an alumnus of Queen’s University Belfast and the Royal Irish Academy of Music. A current recipient of the BBC / Arts Council NI Young Musicians’ Platform and a former Young Associate Artist with Opera Theatre Company, operatic roles include Moralès Carmen, Don Alfonso Così fan tutte, Malatesta Don Pasquale, and Fabrizio La pietra del paragone. Recent operatic appearances include Le Geôlier / Javelinot, Dialogues des Carmélites for Grange Park Opera, Lane / Merriman in The Importance of Being Earnest with NI Opera / Wide Open Opera and Assassin / Apparition in Macbeth with NI Opera.

Recent concert engagements include Messiah with the Palestrina Choir and the Orchestra of St. Cecilia and a concert of arias with the Ulster Orchestra broadcast by the BBC. Future plans include Valentin in Faust for Clonter Opera and Collatinus in Irish Youth Opera’s The Rape of Lucretia. In the autumn Christopher will be continuing his studies on the award-winning opera course at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

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ANDREW BOUSHELL Toby Higgins

DARRAGH KELLY Narrator

Andrew Boushell completed an opera performance diploma at the Operastudio Vlaanderen, Belgium supported by the Arts Council of Ireland. He is a graduate of the Royal College of Music where his postgraduate studies were supported by the Douglas & Hilda Simmonds Award and is an honours graduate of the BMus course at the DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama. He continues his studies with Rosa Mannion.

Andrew’s oratorio repertoire includes works

by Puccini, Handel, Purcell, Gounod, Bruckner, Bach and Britten. Recent highlights have included Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle, Bach’s St. John’s Passion in Kent, Handel’s Messiah at Handel-Halle Germany, Haydn’s Creation in Belfast and Ramírez’s Missa Criolla at the RDS Dublin.

Operatic experience includes the role of The Young Collector in Opera Ireland’s Irish premiere of Previn’s A Streetcar Named Desire, Ferrando in Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutte in a joint production between DIT and Opera Ireland and a tour of Northern Ireland performing the title role in Mozart’s Bastien and Bastienne as a member of Opera Theatre Company’s Young Associate Artist Programme. Other engagements have included the cover of Sellem in Stravinsky’s The Rake’s Progress for British Youth Opera, King Oebalus in Mozart’s Apollo et Hyacinthus for the Rose Opera Company and Testo in Monteverdi’s Il Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda Recently Andrew covered the role of First Elder in Handel’s Susanna for with the Early Opera Company conducted by Christian Curnyn and performed the role of Ferrando for Rye Festival Arts Festival.

Darragh Kelly’s previous work for Rough Magic includes The Critic, Plaza Suite, Phaedra, The Importance of Being Earnest, Solemn Mass for a Full Moon in Summer, The Taming of the Shrew, Improbable Frequency, Is This About Sex?, Attempts on Her Life, Don Carlos, The Taming of the Shrew (nominated Best Supporting Actor, Irish Times Theatre Awards 2006). Darragh is a founder member of Rough Magic.

Other theatre roles include Guaranteed (Fishamble); Slattery’s Sago Saga (Performance Corporation); Hamlet (Second Age); The House, Last Days of a Reluctant Tyrant, Three Sisters, All My Sons, The Colleen Bawn, Give Me Your Answer Do!, The Importance of Being Earnest, Macbeth, Philadelphia, Here I Come!, Angels in America, Doldrum Bay (Abbey Theatre); Hysteria (B*Spoke); Our Father (Almeida Theatre).

Film and television work includesThe Clinic, Hide and Seek, Proof, Proof 2, Paths to Freedom, Stew (RTÉ); Judge John Deed, Ballykissangel (BBC); The Young Indiana Chronicles (Lucas Films); Double Carpet (Pegasus); Intermission; Nora; Connemara; Veronica Guerin; Ailsa; Snakes and Ladders; The General; Batman Begins; Boxed.

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AEDÍN COSGROVE Production Designer Aedín co-founded Pan Pan in 1991. Designs for Pan Pan include, The Playboy of the Western World (Beijing), The Crumb Trail, The Rehearsal Playing the Dane at Dublin Theatre Festival 2010 (winner for the 2010 Irish Times Irish Theatre Award for Best Set Design and Best Production), Do Di Zhu (Fight the Landlord) for Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre and Shanghai Expo, All That Fall by Samuel Beckett (winner of the 2011 Irish Times Irish Theatre Award for Best Lighting Design), A Doll’s House at Smock Alley, Everyone is King Lear in his Own Home for Dublin Theatre Festival 2012 and Embers

by Samuel Beckett for Edinburgh International Festival (nominated Best Lighting Irish Theatre Irish Award 2013 ).

Recent Opera and Dance designs include Falling Song and Five Ways to Drown for Junk Ensemble, Pasquale, Cosi Fan Tutti and Carmen for Opera Theatre Company and Dogs for Emma Martin Dance. Other recent work includes Man of Valor for Corn Exchange, Lighting for Perve

by Stacey Gregg at the Peacock, No Worst there is None and Record for Stomach Box and The Big Yum Yum by Pat Mc Cabe for Corcadorca.

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CONSOLATA BOYLE Costume Designer A UCD graduate in Archaeology and History, Consolata trained at the Abbey Theatre, before becoming resident designer in the Peacock.

After several years as a freelancer, where her credits included the world première of Brian Friel’s Translations for Field Day (with Ray McAnally and Liam Neeson), and Joe Dowling’s acclaimed production of Juno and the Paycock for the Gate Theatre, which transferred to Broadway, she began to work in film as a costume designer. Her varied credits include Neil Jordan’s Byzantium, The Iron Lady (with Meryl Streep), The Eclipse, The Other Man, Asylum, Angela’s Ashes, The Winslow Boy, and Into the West. She has collaborated with Stephen Frears seven times, designing costumes for Tamara Drewe, Chéri, The Queen (with Helen Mirren), Mary Reilly, The Van, The Snapper, and Philomena, with Judi Dench. Her television credits include The Special Relationship (HBO), Into the Storm (HBO), and The Lion in Winter (Showtime). Consolata’s recent work includes a new film version of Strindberg’s Miss Julie, with Jessica Chastain, Colin Farrell, and Samantha Morton, which was written and directed by Liv Ullmann, and Testament of Youth, based on Vera Brittains’s memoir of the First World War; both will be released later this year. Consolata gained Oscar® and BAFTA nominations for her work on The Queen, for which she also won a Costume Designers Guild Award. She received an Emmy Award and a CDG nomination for her work on The Lion in Winter, an Emmy nomination for Into the Storm, a CDG nomination for Philomena, as well as five IFTA Awards.

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KILLIAN FARRELL Assistant Conductor

AOIFE O’SULLIVAN Répétiteur

Killian is currently a second year student in Trinity College, Dublin, where he is studying music. He is the musical director of the Jubilate Choir, with whom he made his professional conducting debut in April 2011 in a performance of Bach’s St. John Passion, leading a cast of soloists headed by renowned baroque specialist John Elwes. He is the first Young Associate Conductor to be appointed by Opera Theatre Company, and he was also appointed chorusmaster for Lyric Opera Productions in May 2013. He has worked as assistant conductor and répétiteur on their recent productions of La traviata and Rusalka in the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin. In August he made his international conducting debut, leading The Mikado in Buxton, England. Oratorio engagements in 2013 included Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, Haydn’s Creation and Britten’s St. Nicolas with the Orchestra of St. Cecilia, and Handel’s Messiah for the DIT Conservatory. He made his National Concert Hall conducting debut in January 2014, leading DIT’s productions of Puccini’s La bohème and Lehár’s The Merry Widow. Recent engagements include chorus master for Wide Open Opera’s production of John Adams’ Nixon in China in May 2014.

Aoife studied at the College of Music with Frank Heneghan and later at the RIAM with Dr John O’Conor. She graduated from Trinity College Dublin with an honours degree in music. Between 1996-98, she studied at the Mozarteum (Salzburg) with Andrezj Jasinski and Sergio Perticaroli, and in 1999 with Mikael Eliasen (Centro Studi Italiani) and Wolfram Rieger (Max Reger Tage, Germany).

She studied as a Fulbright scholar at the Curtis Institute of Music (1999) with Mikael Eliasen, Head of Vocal and Opera Studies and she joined the staff for her final two years.

She has played for masterclasses including Malcolm Martineau, Ann Murray DBE, Sir Thomas Allen, Thomas Hampson, and Anna Moffo. Aoife worked on Zaide (the Britten Pears Young Artist Programme 2004) and Turn of the Screw (Cheltenham Festival).

Concerts with Ann Murray (Wigmore Hall), Gweneth Ann Jeffers, Wendy Dawn Thompson and with Sinead Campbell Wallace.

She was awarded the Geoffrey Parsons Trust Award (2005). Aoife worked with Wexford Festival Opera in 2005/06, and on Orlando, Xerxes and Alcina (OTC) and Dead Man Walking and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Opera Ireland).

Aoife also worked at the National Opera Studio in London from 2006-08 and was on the deputy coach list for the Jette Parker Young Artist Programme at the ROH Covent Garden. Aoife worked as repetiteur at the RIAM in 2008/2009 and is currently a répétiteur and vocal coach at DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama.

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The best Arts & Entertainment coverage at your fingertips

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Culturefox.ie is the definitive online guide to Irish cultural events, giving you complete information about cultural activities both here and abroad.

To find out what’s on near you right now, visit Culturefox.ie on your computer or mobile phone.

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OPERA THEATRE COMPANY SUPPORTERS

ROUGH MAGIC SUPPORTERS

Benefactor Anonymous

Gold Patrons Abirgreen Ltd Behaviour & Attitudes Lesley Bruce Kaye & John Fanning Barbara FitzGerald Roy Foster Joseph Hassett Kim Hunter John Mahoney Pat Mangan John O’Donnell David Soden & David McConnell TV3 Television Network Ltd. Bill & Denise Whelan

Patrons Claire Callanan Maureen DeForge Siobhan Donovan Michael Duggan Maire & Maurice Foley Anne Makower & Chris Fitzsimon Patrick Honohan Prof. A.R. & Joan M. Manning Margaret McAlpine Richard John McBratney Petria McDonnell Dr. John McKeown Alastair & Ann Martha Rowan F.X. and Pat O’Brien Brenda & Donald Weir Supporters Philomena Byrne Carol Hunter Nuala Johnson Friends Mary Colley David Grealy Tom Grealy Matthew Harrison David & Breda Humphries Paul & Joyce Kelly Martin Mansergh John O’Leary Margaret Quigley

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Patrons Desmond Barry Ray & Mary Bates Lilian G. Buchanan C. Cashman Santoro Robert & Lillian Chambers Donall Curtin Elma Cusack Catherine Donnelly Mary Finan Philip & Nicola Flynn Nicholas Grene Timothy King R.J. McBratney Denis McCullough David & Julie McMullan Patrick Molloy L. Monahan David Nolan Cormac Ó Cuilleanáin Sheila & Patricia O’Flanagan Liam O’Rourke George & Margaret Parker Anne Vaughan & Joe Brady Sari Winckworth

Production Support Artists and companies who have received Rough Magic Production Support over the past three years include: Annie Gill, ANU Productions, Sarah Baxter & Kate Heffernan, Bright Light Productions, Denis Clohessy, Collapsing Horse Theatre Company, Shaun Dunne & Talking Shop Ensemble, Christine Dwyer Hickey, Making Strange Theatre Company, Zoe Ni Riordain, Pageant Wagon, Playgroup, Aoife SpillaneHinks, TheEmergencyRoom, Then This Theatre, Dylan Tighe, Trees Rd Productions, Underscore_Productions and Willfredd Theatre.

Rough Magic proudly supports the National Campaign for the Arts.

Registered Number: 12275

Acknowledgements Opera Theatre Company and Rough Magic gratefully acknowledge the support of the Arts Council/An Comhairle Ealaíon, Culture Ireland, our Patrons and Dublin City Council.

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