Wexford Festival Opera 2017

DISCOVER A HIDDEN GEM WEXFORD FESTIVAL OPERA 19 OCTOBER – 5 NOVEMBER

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OPER A

OPER A

OPER A

MEDEA

MARGHERITA

RISURREZIONE

Medea is a fierce work, and not simply because of its subject matter; plenty of uncompromising plots have been watered down before reaching the operatic stage. As the New Grove Dictionary of Opera explains, ‘In its unmitigated horror, this opera has few equals. Its savage fury ties it closely to its Greek ancestry.’ It is all the more astonishing, then, to remember that it was written a mere six years after Die Zauberflöte. Cherubini, who composed over 30 operas as well as large quantities of church and chamber music, was himself fully cosmopolitan and stands apart from other Italian composers of his day. Having moved to Paris early on in his career and enjoyed aristocratic patronage, he had some trouble adapting to post-Revolution conditions, though not enough to stop him being appointed Napoleon’s director of music in Vienna in 1805–6.

Following the success of Cristina, regina di Svezia at Wexford in 2013, acclaimed by many as one of the most worthwhile rediscoveries in the festival’s long history, we return to another of Jacopo Foroni’s operas.

Margherita is a delightful comedy in which a solider and his betrothed are kept apart by confusion, duels, mistaken identity, treachery and jealousy. Roberto wishes to marry Margherita, but she is in love with Ernesto. Ernesto and Margherita decide to marry the day after he discovers his battalion is shipping out. Ernesto’s Colonel is attacked and Ernesto is blamed. All seems lost until the Count clears everything up. Ernesto and Margherita are reunited and marry.

Risurrezione tells of the young aristocrat, Nekhlyudov, who while serving on a jury recognises the prostitute Katerina Maslova as the young girl he had once seduced, and how he rejects his former life and follows her to Siberia, trying to undo past wrongs. Tolstoy’s complex critique of Russian society was particularly unsparing in its gaze on the Orthodox Church, so much so that it led to the writer’s formal excommunication. Ironically, given the adaptations that have been made of his work for the lyric stage, Tolstoy hated opera because he thought it superficial. Alfano’s opera concentrates on the drama of personal relationships, and Risurrezione quickly became a hit in operatic capitals from Paris to Chicago.

Luigi Cherubini (1760–1842)

Jacopo Foroni (1824–1858)

O’REILLY THEATRE | NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE TICKETS €20 – €150 Thursday 19 October – 8 p.m.

Sunday 22 October – 5 p.m.

28 OCTOBER PERFORMANCE SUPPORTERS

Saturday 28 October – 8 p.m.

Friday 3 November – 8 p.m.

3 NOVEMBER PERFORMANCE SPONSOR

Terry and Marjorie Neill

O’REILLY THEATRE | NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE TICKETS €20 – €150 Friday 20 October – 8 p.m.

Thursday 26 October – 8 p.m.

Sunday 29 October – 3 p.m.

Wednesday 1 November – 8 p.m.

Saturday 4 November – 8 p.m.

26 OCTOBER PERFORMANCE SPONSOR

4 NOVEMBER PERFORMANCE SPONSOR

Franco Alfano (1875–1954)

O’REILLY THEATRE | NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE TICKETS €20 – €150 Saturday 21 October – 8 p.m.

Friday 27 October – 8 p.m.

Monday 30 October – 8 p.m.

Thursday 2 November – 8 p.m.

Sunday 5 November – 5 p.m.

21 OCTOBER PERFORMANCE SUPPORTER

21 OCTOBER PERFORMANCE SPONSOR

Stephen Vernon

SHORT WORK

SHORT WORK

SHORT WORK

LA SCALA DI SETA

DUBLINERS

RIGOLETTO

While some of Rossini’s operas count among the best loved in the repertoire, there are still many corners of his output worthy of exploring at a festival devoted to operatic rarities. In the context of this year’s programme, he can be seen both as coming from a generation or two before that of Foroni and from a generation or two after that of Cherubini, both Italians who sought their fortunes abroad.

Rossini was not as quick as Cherubini to head to Paris, then the world’s operatic capital, but he eventually did so – indeed, like Cherubini (and Chopin), he was buried at the Père Lachaise Cemetery, though his remains would later be taken home to his native Pesaro. La Scala di seta belongs firmly to his early Italian years, and indeed is a key work in his development, even if it is only more recently that its jewel-like qualities have come to be fully appreciated.

World premiere of two new short operas based on stories (Counterparts and The Boarding House) from Dubliners by James Joyce, which are given a fresh new treatment in this operatic doublebill. Just over 100 years after they were first published, composer Andrew Synnott and librettist Arthur Riordan combine perfectly to capture the world of the original stories and bring Joyce’s unique characters vividly to life.

Dating from the very middle of Verdi’s middle period, and occupying first place in the famous early 1850s trilogy that includes Il Trovatore and La Traviata, Rigoletto is one of the best known of all Verdi’s operas. Indeed, it is the first of his operas to have remained popular and firmly in the repertoire without interruption, since its premiere at La Fenice in Venice in 1851 to the present day. There were, nevertheless, impediments to early performances, both from the official censors and self-censorious audiences, appalled by what they saw as the ‘immorality’ and ‘obscene triviality’ of the Victor Hugo play on which Verdi and his librettist Francesco Maria Piave based their masterpiece. It is also essentially an intimate drama, something that lends itself to the adaptations also required in a pared-down performance such as that presented here in the ShortWorks series.

CLAYTON WHITES HOTEL | TICKETS €30

Friday 20 October – 3.30 p.m.

Thursday 26 October – 3.30 p.m.

Gioachino Rossini (1792–1868)

Saturday 21 October – 3.30 p.m.

Tuesday 24 October – 3.30 p.m.

Friday 27 October – 3.30 p.m.

Monday 30 October – 3.30 p.m.

Friday 3 November – 3.30 p.m.

The Festival ShortWorks are made possible by the generous support of The Lord Magan of Castletown

Andrew Synnott (1970–)

Giuseppe Verdi (1813–1901)

This double-bill is scored for piano, string quartet and a cast of six singers. The music is both contemporary and entertaining, affectionately offering a new way to experience Joyce’s celebrated and popular stories of his native Dublin.

CLAYTON WHITES HOTEL | TICKETS €30 Sunday 29 October – 11 a.m.

Wednesday 1 November – 3.30 p.m.

The Festival ShortWorks are made possible by the generous support of The Lord Magan of Castletown

CLAYTON WHITES HOTEL | TICKETS €30 Sunday 22 October – 11 a.m.

Thursday 2 November – 3.30 p.m.

Wednesday 25 October – 3.30 p.m. Saturday 4 November – 3.30 p.m.

Saturday 28 October – 3.30 p.m.

The Festival ShortWorks are made possible by the generous support of The Lord Magan of Castletown

CONCERT

RECITALS

LECTURE

THE THOMAS MOORE SONGBOOK

LUNCHTIME RECITALS

DR TOM WALSH LECTURE

‘The poet of all circles and the idol of his own’ – the words are Lord Byron’s, inscribed on the tall Celtic cross erected above Thomas Moore’s grave one hundred years ago. Byron adored the Irish Melodies: he told Moore ‘I have them by heart ... they are my matins and my vespers’; Ireland’s national song writer was similarly revered in the land of his birth. He moved easily in the privileged circles of London’s salons where he was celebrated for singing and accompanying songs such as The minstrel boy’, Believe me, if all those endearing young charms, The meeting of the waters, The harp that once through Tara’s halls, and particularly, The last rose of summer which quickly became the anthem of every great soprano of the day.

As a result of their popularity, the Irish Melodies were continually updated; some, such as Frank Lambert’s She is far from the land became even more famous than the original.

ST IBERIUS CHURCH | TICKETS €20 Friday 20 October – 1.05 p.m.

Saturday 28 October – 1.05 p.m.

The very popular Lunchtime Recitals provide an insight into the artistic personality of some of the principal singers of the Festival and are a way to ‘meet’ them in an informal setting. In the beautiful and acoustically excellent eighteenth-century church of St Iberius in the centre of Wexford, audiences appreciate the musical versatility of solo singers who perform a wide variety of music from across the repertoire, including operatic arias, lieder, oratorio, concert and popular songs.

One of the delights of attending a Lunchtime Recital is that the programme is not advertised beforehand, so everyone shares the same degree of anticipation and expectation. Unsurprisingly, the Lunchtime Recitals sell out very quickly.

The artists and their performance dates will be announced at the beginning of the Festival.

ST IBERIUS CHURCH | TICKETS €15 Saturday 21 October –1.05 p.m.

Tuesday 24 October – 1.05 p.m.

Wednesday 25 October – 1.05 p.m.

Thursday 26 October – 1.05 p.m.

Friday 27 October – 1.05 p.m.

Monday 30 October– 1.05 p.m.

Wednesday 1 November – 1.05 p.m.

Thursday 2 November – 1.05 p.m.

Friday 3 November – 1.05 p.m.

Saturday 4 November – 1.05 p.m.

The 2017 Dr Tom Walsh Lecture will be given by Fiona Shaw, Irish actress and theatre and opera director, known for her role as Petunia Dursley in the Harry Potter films and her role as Marnie Stonebrook in season four of the HBO series True Blood (2011). She has worked extensively with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre, twice winning the Olivier Award for Best Actress; for various roles including Electra in 1990, and for Machinal in 1994. She won the 1997 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Solo Performance for The Waste Land. Her other stage work includes playing the title role in Medea, both in the West End and on Broadway (2001–02). She was awarded an Honorary CBE in 2001.

Born in County Cork, Miss Shaw trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London and was part of a ‘new wave’ of actors to emerge from the Academy. Tea and coffee will be served after the Lecture.

CLAYTON WHITES HOTEL | TICKETS €10 Saturday 21 October – 11 a.m.

Kindly supported by Victoria Walsh-Hamer

PACK AGE

LECTURE

CONCERT

DAYTIME EVENTS PACKAGE

OPERAS OF THE PAST, MIRRORS OF OUR PRESENT

GALA CONCERT

Discover the world of opera with our Daytime Events Package which includes a Lunchtime Recital in St Iberius Church (1.05 p.m.), lunch in Clayton Whites Hotel (2.15 p.m.) and a ShortWork opera in the afternoon in Clayton Whites Hotel (3.30 p.m.). To book your daytime package, simply phone our box office on 1850 4 OPERA/+353 53 912 2144.

ST IBERIUS CHURCH, CLAYTON WHITES HOTEL | TICKETS €65 Friday 20 October Thomas Moore Songbook – Lunch – Dubliners Saturday 21 October Recital – Lunch – La Scala di seta Tuesday 24 October Recital – Lunch – La Scala di seta Wednesday 25 October Recital – Lunch – Rigoletto Thursday 26 October Recital – Lunch – Dubliners Friday 27 October Recital – Lunch – La Scala di seta

Saturday 28 October Thomas Moore Songbook – Lunch – Rigoletto Monday 30 October Recital – Lunch – La Scala di seta Wednesday 1 November Recital – Lunch – Dubliners Thursday 2 November Recital – Lunch – Rigoletto Friday 3 November Recital – Lunch – La Scala di seta Saturday 4 November Recital – Lunch – Rigoletto

Presented by Sylvia L’Écuyer (associate professor of musicology in the Faculty of Music of the University of Montreal; broadcaster with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, where from 1996 to 2000 she was director of music; producer of the Opera Saturday for Ici Musique).

Often inspired by the works of the greatest poets and playwrights, operas expose us to another perspective of our humanity. Gods and nymphs, dukes and queens, warriors and courtesans are inspired by the same passions and defeated by the same foibles as we are. Today the stage directors feel the urge to make the message clear, shedding crowns and gowns, and updating the drama to contemporary circumstances. At which point do these adaptations betray the true nature of the work?

JEROME HYNES THEATRE, NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE TICKETS €10 Saturday 28 October – 11 a.m.

The Gala Concert is one of the highlights of Wexford Festival Opera and features a collection of favourite party pieces from members of the Festival company. All performers generously donate their time and talent for the Gala Concert, and all proceeds go toward supporting Wexford Festival Opera.

Early booking is advised.

NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE | TICKETS €65 – €80 Sunday 29 October – 8.30 p.m.

FUNDERS AND SPONSORS Principal Funder

Grant Funders

Corporate Leaders

PIANO RECITAL

PL AY

FINGHIN COLLINS

MY REAL LIFE

One of Ireland’s most successful musicians, Dubliner Finghin Collins was born in 1977 and studied piano at the Royal Irish Academy of Music with John O’Conor and the Geneva Conservatoire with Dominique Merlet. Winner of the RTÉ Musician of the Future Competition in 1994 and the Classical Category at the National Entertainment Awards in Ireland in1998, Finghin went on to achieve major international success by taking first prize at the Clara Haskil International Piano Competition in Switzerland in 1999. Since then he has developed a flourishing international career that takes him all over Europe, the United States and the Far East.

‘A play that will make you laugh and make you cry…’

In 2016 Finghin made his debuts in Turkey, China and Australia as well as performing throughout Europe. In March 2017, he performs a recital as part of the National Concert Hall’s International Concert Series to mark his 40th birthday. Other engagements include performances in Jersey, Switzerland, France, Ireland and the USA, where he will make his debut at the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival in August 2017, performing with counter-tenor David Daniels.

O’REILLY THEATRE | NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE TICKETS €25 – €30 Monday 30 October – 11 a.m.

Theatre Royal Productions presents Sing Street star Don Wycherley in the touching and entertaining My Real Life by Eoin Colfer.

Directed by Ben Barnes.

Wexford man Noel has advanced MS and decides to end it all. While waiting for his overdose to take effect he records an increasingly rambling message full of humour and small-town anecdotes for his best friend. Noel has apologies to make and messages to send. He has love in his heart and he wants to declare it even if it’s already too late. Noel spends what is possibly the last hour of his life re-living the highs and lows of the past forty years and, surprisingly perhaps, it’s not all doom and gloom.

JEROME HYNES THEATRE | NATIONAL OPERA HOUSE TICKETS €20 – €25 Friday 27 October – 8.30 p.m.

Saturday 28 October – 8.30 p.m.

Friday 3 November – 8.30 p.m.

Saturday 4 November – 8.30 p.m.

Corporate Sponsors

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Community & Education Partners

Accommodation Partners

Preferred Hotel Partner

Media and Hospitality Partners