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West Green House Season of Music and Opera 2008Stop Press!! Limited numbers of tickets are still available for all performances,
The performance will be held in The Green Theatre where undercover tiered seating is specially erected for the occasion. Afternoon tea may be pre-ordered and served in the Walled Garden (weather permitting) from 4.30 onwards. Guests are invited to view the garden prior to curtain time. Gates open from 5pm to allow opera patrons to organise their picnic site. Picnics are in a romantic setting beside the lake. If you wish you may bring your own table, chairs and rugs – alternatively you may wish to dine undercover in one of our Pavilions (see booking form). We can provide a picnic for you should you not wish to bring your own. Picnic menus will be sent with the theatre tickets, to be returned direct to our caterers. Picnic spots can be set up from 1.00pm on the day of the performance. Please consult a member of our staff who will advise you as to where picnic sites are available. To enable parties to sit together, numbered seat tickets will be handed to you on arrival. The performance commences at 7pm with a picnic interval of 1 hour at approximately 8.15pm. Dress is customarily Black Tie. Seating strictly limited to 300. Ample
on site parking After each performance the gardens and lakes are lit by a hundred flares
and will be Chairs and tables are provided within the dinner pavilions and prebooked shared undercover dining space only. Our caterer can supply picnics and a menu will be sent for your selection with your tickets, however you are very welcome to bring your own picnic. Car parking is adjacent to the garden in the old orchard. Tickets will be issued from January 2008. Please click here to download a booking form in PDF format (26k) Giuseppe Verdi - Falstaff
Saturday 2 August 2008 Yvonne has performed this part before with Andrew Shore for the English Please click here to download a booking form in PDF format (26k) Johann Strauss II- Die FledermausOperetta in three acts Saturday 9 August 2008 This fantastically convoluted plot demanding revenge for a simple practical joke involving flying mice. This sparkling operetta explodes onto stage in a cascade of lavish frocks, chandeliers and tragi-comic heroines. Welcome old world Vienna on a summer’s night as we meet a plethora of wayward husbands, indiscreet wives, insincere suitors and a dubious Russian prince who blames it all on his mother. This production will have you waltzing through the gardens and, in true West Green style, offers a few surprises along the way especially at Prince Orlofsky’s decadent ball when a guest entertains….. Please click here to download a booking form in PDF format (26k) IL Mondo Della Luna
Saturday 16th August It’s a familiar story, but with a twist: a protective father, aptly named Buonafede – "Goodfaith" – is intent on preventing his two daughters (and their maidservant) from marrying wrongly. One of the suitors, Ecclitico, is equally intent on outwitting him. Ecclitico, an amateur astrologer, persuades Buonafede that he can transport him to the moon. All is possible in this apparent garden of desires, where Cecco, another of the suitors-in-disguise, reigns supreme as Emperor. Back on earth, lunar events need some unravelling, but all’s well that ends well! Presenting us with a highly comical 18th century view of "life on the moon", Goldoni and Haydn also nudge us into considering why we are so often hidebound by convention, and at the same time so free from scruple in a change of surroundings! Please click here to download a booking form in PDF format (26k) Drottningholm Comes to West Green House
An original piece of decoration for Drottningholms Slottsteater, in the
collections of Stiftelsen Drottningholms teatermuseum.A few miles outside the Swedish capital Stockholm lies the palace of Drottningholm; in its grounds a magical 18th-century theatre, one of the wonders of the world of opera. Built in 1766, the theatre fell into disuse in the early years of the 19th century and lay hidden until it was rediscovered in the 1920s. Normally there is only one way to experience the delights of Drottningholm: get on a plane bound for Scandinavia. But in August 2008 Drottningholm will come to West Green House in Hampshire and perform Haydn's comic opera Il mondo della luna (Life on the Moon). Drottningholm rarely goes on tour so this becomes a precious opportunity to see and hear a great opera company, one which regularly plays to packed houses and attracts rave reviews. The production touring to West Green House will present some of Sweden's most promising young singers, chosen from senior students at the University College of Opera, and Drottningholm’s own period instrument orchestra dressed in eighteenth century costume. The College has become one of Europe's leading centres of opera training and it traces its origins back to the same "theatre king", Gustavus III, who made Drottningholm one of the most important operatic centres of Europe. (Gustavus was later assassinated at a masked ball, the inspiration for Verdi's opera Un ballo in maschera.) Artistic Director of Drottningholm Mark Tatlow writes "I am really looking forward to the bringing together of two 18th-century gems: Drottningholms Slottsteater and West Green House in the context of a third: Il mondo della luna. In Il mondo Haydn interweaves love, intrigue, fantasy and experiment to create what has rightly been described as a masterpiece of classical light opera."
West Green House’s New Green TheatreTo celebrate the visit of Drottningholm’s Opera we have take inspiration from their historic theatre sets to design a new Opera pavilion entrance and stage. The overall design is by Bath architect Simon Morray-Jones, the painted pavilion entrance (pictured below) and the new stage’s proscenium arch will be the work of James Adams. With a new orchestra pit, lighting and a new raking of 300 seats the new “theatre” will be comfortable and visually spectacular.
Home Page • Events • Opera • Visiting the Garden • Marylyn Abbott |
We are thrilled and delighted to announce our most prestigious opera
season. For the first time our patron Yvonne Kenny, the Australian Opera
superstar, will perform in two operas both produced by Opera Project whose
witty productions are a regular joy. It is now 5 years since we asked
Yvonne to schedule an opera performance for West Green House so this is
a very special event. Then on August 16th and 17th West Green House Opera
has sponsored 50 singers and musicians from Drottningholms Slottsteater
to perform at West Green House. 
Commedia
lirica in three acts
Dramma giocosa in three acts
