A trio of operas on your doorstep

There is just one month to go until the 2015 Glyndebourne Tour arrives at the Theatre Royal Plymouth.

Now in its 47th year, Glyndebourne Tour will present three main stage productions, two of which transfer straight from the 2015 Glyndebourne Festival where they premiered this summer.

Starting the week of world-class operas is a revival of an opulent period staging of Donizetti’s Don Pasquale; an acclaimed production described by The Stage as “Glyndebourne at its best”.

An elegant new production of Mozart’s Die Entführung aus dem Serail will follow straight from Festival 2015.  Among the cast is the up-and-coming American tenor Benjamin Bliss, currently a member of the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program at The Metropolitan Opera in New York. Also transferring from the 2015 Festival is a new production of Handel’s oratorio Saul, which tells the well-known Biblical tale of the first King of Israel’s love and loathing for his eventual successor, David. Directed by the brilliant, provocative Australian director, Barrie Kosky, it features Henry Waddington in the title role opposite the South African countertenor Christopher Ainslie as David.
Local talent, David Webb, takes the role of the High Priest.

All three main stage productions have a central role for the Glyndebourne Chorus, an ensemble with a well-earned reputation for showcasing the soloists of tomorrow. Previous Glyndebourne Chorus members include such familiar names as Gerald Finley, Sarah Connolly and John Tomlinson.

David Pickard, General Director at Glyndebourne, said: “Glyndebourne Tour was founded in 1968 to give more people a chance to see our world-class productions and to provide a platform for some of the opera world’s most talented young singers. This year alongside an international cast of up and coming soloists, the Glyndebourne Chorus take a central role in all three productions providing rich opportunities for audiences across the country to watch the stars of tomorrow. It’s a diverse season which I hope will offer much to enjoy for audiences of all musical and theatrical tastes.”

Off stage Plymouth Arts Centre will be screening Glyndebourne’s award-winning production of Benjamin Britten’s Billy Budd on Thursday 26 November. A production which because of its scale Glyndebourne is unable to take on the road. An all-male piece which presents the tense and stifling atmosphere on board a British man of war during the Napoleonic wars, the production was described by The Stage as ‘a masterpiece of emotional ambiguity’.

Glyndebourne Performances for Schools return with Donizetti favourite

This autumn Glyndebourne will offer subsidised tickets to schools across England to attend full-length, fully-staged opera as part of the 2015 Glyndebourne Tour.

Glyndebourne Performances for Schools offer priority booking and reduced price tickets to schools to take their students to see an opera, often for the first time.

Now in its ninth year, Glyndebourne Performances for Schools will present Don Pasquale on Thursday 26 November.

The experience has been tailored with students in mind with an on-stage introduction to prepare students for what to expect and things to look out for in the performance. This is complemented by a specially commissioned Performances for Schools printed programme, free for each student to take home.

To find out more about Performances for Schools visit www.glyndebourne.com/schools