Maria Stuarda in Burry Port

Amelia Earhart landing in Burry Port, South West Wales

Donizetti's Maria Stuarda returns to Wales this week, not in Welsh National Opera's production which we saw in Cardiff in 2013, but to Burry Port in Camarthenshire where it will be performed at the Memorial Hall by Burry Port opera.  Burry Port is perhaps most famous for being where Amelia Earhart landed after her record breaking trans-Atlantic flight.

Burry Port is in South West Wales, and Burry Port Opera has been putting on opera at the Memorial Hall every year since 1951. They are an operatic society, with a chorus made up of locals and with professionals in the main roles and they are the only society promoting Grand Opera in South West Wales. Their first opera was Blodwen by Joseph Parry, the first opera to be written completely in Welsh. This year they are performing Donizetti's Maria Stuarda, with Suzanne Manuell in the title role (Manuell shared the role of Aida in this year's Dorset Opera), Adele O'Neill as Elisabetta, plus Andrew Morris, Adrian Powter, Kees Huymans, Anita Appleton. The director is Keith J Clarke, and conductor is the society's musical director Ryan Lee.The production runs from 29 October to 1 November 2014, further information from the Burry Port Opera website.