New Opera

New operas seem to be in the air, especially in smaller opera companies. All are coming to fruition whilst going through testing performances and workshops. Next month English Touring Opera kicks off its Autumn tour which includes the premiere of Promised End, Alexander Goehr's opera based on King Lear. The company workshopped the piece at Dartington early this year.

And Opera Circus have started a project called Naciketa, this is a work in progress and will lead to an opera by Nigel Osborne and Ariel Dorfman. They are giving 4 work in progress performances, starting on Sept 29th at Opera North in Leeds.
The child Naciketa poses death three questions about love, reconciliation and mortality, in a musical journey of hope.

Then Opera East are preparing the premier of Tarik O'Regan's Heart of Darkness which they will be performing at the Linbury Theatre at Covent Garden in 2011. The opera, a chamber piece in 1 act, is based on Joseph Conrad's novel of the same name and the libretto is by Tom Phillips