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English Touring Opera’s Autumn 2015 season of French opera
English Touring Opera’s Autumn 2015 season, touring England this October and November,
features three classics of French opera.
The season opens in London at the Royal College of Music’s Britten Theatre from Thursday 1 to
Saturday 10 October 2015, with three new productions: Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande,
Massenet’s Werther, and Offenbach’s The Tales of Hoffmann.
Pelléas et Mélisande is performed in Belgian composer Annelies van Parys's 2011 arrangement for
chamber orchestra, which receives its English premiere with ETO's production. Werther is
performed in Iain Farrington’s new arrangement of Massenet’s score for a salon ensemble
performing on stage with the singers, while The Tales of Hoffmann is performed in an existing
arrangement for chamber orchestra.
Pelléas et Mélisande is sung in French with English surtitles, and The Tales of Hoffmann and
Werther are sung in English. The productions are designed by Oliver Townsend (sets and
costumes) and Mark Howland (lighting).
After the performances at the Britten Theatre in early October the operas tour until Saturday 21
November, to Buxton Opera House, Malvern Theatres, Durham Gala Theatre, Harrogate Theatre,
Cambridge West Road Concert Hall, Theatre Royal Bath, Snape Maltings and Exeter Northcott
Theatre.
James Conway, ETO’s General Director, said: ‘We set out to find three of the very best French
operas, with compelling dramas that could be especially well told on an intimate scale – and
decided on three that are essentially ‘French’, though they could hardly be more different from
each other. ’
He added: ‘It’s a special season, certainly, and one of real beauty and intimacy, in tone ranging
from the most ironic to the utterly rhapsodic. I was aware of the exquisite van Parys arrangement
of Debussy's masterpiece, which is really exciting in its own right. I have loved Werther for as long
as I can remember, and wanted to hear it sung by fresh, young voices, with clear text, and I knew
of Iain Farrington's passion for and deep knowledge of French chamber music and song. As for
Hoffmann, I wanted to make a special case for it as a strange and wonderful drama.’
Pelléas et Mélisande
Belgian composer Annelies van Parys’s 2011 arrangement of Pelléas et Mélisande receives its
English premiere this autumn in ETO’s new production, conducted by Jonathan Berman and
directed by James Conway.
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Jonathan McGovern sings the title role of Pelléas, with Stephan Loges as his half-brother Golaud,
and Susanna Hurrell as his beloved Mélisande. The production is sung in French with English
surtitles.
The story begins when the widower Golaud brings home the young maiden Mélisande to his
castle. He is violently jealous of her increasingly close relationship with his half-brother Pelléas,
and even uses his own young son to spy on the couple. When Pelléas meets Mélisande one last
time and the two confess their love for each other, Golaud kills his brother in a rage.
The cast also includes Michael Druiett as King Arkel, Helen Johnson as Genevieve, the mother of
Pelléas and Golaud, and Lauren Zolezzi as Golaud’s son Yniold.
Pelléas et Mélisande opens at the Britten Theatre, RCM, on Thursday 1 October 2015, 7.30pm.
Werther
Commonly acknowledged as the greatest of Massenet’s operas, Werther distinguishes itself for its
elegance, charm and raw emotional impact. Based on Goethe’s classic novel, the opera tells the
story of an apparently idyllic family torn apart by uncontrollable passion.
ETO’s new production of Werther is directed by Oliver Platt, with Iain Farrington conducting his
own new arrangement of the score for a salon ensemble performing on stage with the singers.
The production, which is sung in English, also features a different group of young singers from
local schools and theatre groups in each venue, singing a children’s chorus.
The title role of the impassioned and over-sensitive young artist is sung by emerging talent Ed
Ballard, in the special version Massenet prepared for baritone. Carolyn Dobbin sings the role of
Charlotte, the object of Werther’s love, who is engaged to be married to his friend Albert (sung by
Simon Wallfisch).
The cast also includes Michael Druiett as Charlotte’s father, and Lauren Zolezzi as her sister
Sophie.
Werther opens at the Britten Theatre, RCM, on Friday 2 October 2015, 7.30pm.
The Tales of Hoffmann
The Tales of Hoffmann is both a work of genius, studded with famous melodies by its composer
Jacques Offenbach, and as dark a comedy as you can get.
The story sees the poet Hoffmann tell an audience the strange and vivid stories of his three former
lovers, whilst waiting in a drinking-house for his latest mistress Stella. The three women range
from a Venetian courtesan to a doomed soprano singer, and even a mechanical doll. In each tale
Hoffmann is also confronted by a mysterious villain devoted to his destruction.
ETO’s new production, directed by James Bonas and conducted by Philip Sunderland, matches the
talents of young tenor Sam Furness in the title role and Ilona Domnich, who played Mimì in ETO’s
tour of La bohème earlier this year, in the famously demanding role of Stella and the three
heroines.
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Australian baritone Warwick Fyfe plays the three villains, whilst Louise Mott sings the roles of
Hoffmann’s Muse and his friend Nicklausse.
The production, which is sung in English, is accompanied by a series of workshops touring to
secondary schools in advance of each term-time tour visit, with ETO’s staff conductor talking
about the opera and explaining how the production has travelled from an original concept to the
stage.
The Tales of Hoffmann opens at the Britten Theatre, RCM, on Friday 9 October 2015, 7.30pm.
www.englishtouringopera.org.uk
Listings Information
Britten Theatre, Royal College of Music, Prince Consort Road, London, UK
Thursday 1 October 2015, 7.30pm: Pelléas et Mélisande
Friday 2 October 2015, 7.30pm: Werther
Saturday 3 October 2015, 7.30pm: Pelléas et Mélisande
Thursday 8 October 2015, 7.30pm: Werther
Friday 9 October 2015, 7.30pm: The Tales of Hoffmann
Saturday 10 October 2015, 7.30pm: The Tales of Hoffmann
Booking information: 020 3761 7069 / www.englishtouringopera.org.uk
Buxton Opera House, Buxton, Derbyshire, UK
Friday 16 October 2015, 7.30pm: Pelléas et Mélisande
Saturday 17 October 2015, 7.30pm: The Tales of Hoffmann
Sunday 18 October 2015, 3pm: Werther
Booking information: 01298 72190 / www.buxtonoperahouse.org.uk
Malvern Festival Theatre, Malvern, Worcestershire, UK
Thursday 22 October 2015, 7.30pm: Pelléas et Mélisande
Friday 23 October 2015, 7.30pm: The Tales of Hoffmann
Saturday 24 October 2015, 7.30pm: Werther
Booking information: 01684 892277 / www.malvern-theatres.co.uk
Gala Theatre, Durham, County Durham, UK
Monday 26 October 2015, 7.30pm: Werther
Tuesday 27 October 2015, 7.30pm: The Tales of Hoffmann
Booking information: 03000 266 600 / www.galadurham.co.uk
Harrogate Theatre, Harrogate, UK
Thursday 29 October 2015, 7.30pm: Werther
Friday 30 October 2015, 7.30pm: Pelléas et Mélisande
Saturday 31 October 2015, 7.30pm: The Tales of Hoffmann
Booking information: 01423 502 116 / www.harrogatetheatre.co.uk
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West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge, UK
Thursday 5 November 2015, 7.30pm: Werther
Friday 6 November 2015, 7.30pm: The Tales of Hoffmann
Saturday 7 November 2015, 7.30pm: Pelléas et Mélisande
Booking information: 020 3761 7069 / www.englishtouringopera.org.uk
Theatre Royal Bath, Bath, Somerset, UK
Monday 9 November 2015, 7.30pm: Pelléas et Mélisande
Tuesday 10 November 2015, 7.30pm: The Tales of Hoffmann
Booking information: 01225 44 88 44 / www.theatreroyal.org.uk
Snape Maltings Concert Hall, Aldeburgh, Suffolk, UK
Thursday 12 November 2015, 7.30pm: Werther
Friday 13 November 2015, 7.30pm: Pelléas et Mélisande
Saturday 14 November 2015, 7.30pm: The Tales of Hoffmann
Booking information: 01728 687 110 / www.aldeburgh.co.uk
Exeter Northcott Theatre, Exeter, Devon, UK
Wednesday 18 November 2015, 7.30pm: Werther
Thursday 19 November 2015, 7.30pm: The Tales of Hoffmann
Friday 20 November 2015, 7.30pm: Pelléas et Mélisande
Saturday 21 November 2015, 7.30pm: The Tales of Hoffmann
Booking information: 01392 493493 / www.exeternorthcott.co.uk
Please contact Press and Marketing Officer John Walker
([email protected], 020 7833 2555) to request press tickets for the opening
nights of ETO’s Autumn 2015 tour at RCM, or for any other tour venue.
Notes to Editors
The winner of the 2014 Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Opera, English Touring
Opera is the most prolific touring opera company in the UK, travelling annually to around 70
venues, more than any other English opera company. With its mission to offer opera to everyone,
the company presents as many as 140 performances a year. There are two major annual tours,
both performed in full costume with a live orchestra. The spring tour tends to be larger scale,
while autumn tours tend to be more intimate: both seasons often come to venues which receive
little or no other live opera. ETO’s outreach programme focuses on creative work, and ranges from
community operas and music theatre workshops to productions for young people and their
families, featuring artists from the company’s main-stage shows, touring to schools across the UK.
The company is also a national leader in the provision of arts for dementia sufferers. ETO has
helped launch the careers of singers including Amanda Echalaz and Sarah Connolly and gave the
world première of Alexander Goehr’s opera Promised End in 2010.
www.englishtouringopera.org.uk
@ETOpera
#ENDS#
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