Garsington Opera 2015

Garsington Opera's 2015 season at Wormsley will include three new opera productions plus their first collaboration with the Royal Shakespeare Company. The repertoire seems to rather less focussed on the rare and unusual this year, and more on core repertoire performed fine casts with many young singers and a number of opportunities to hear familiar voices in unfamiliar roles. Artistic director Douglas Boyd conducts Mozart's Cosi fan tutte and Mendelssohn's incidental music to A Midsummer Night's Dream whilst there will be a chance to hear the distinguished Britten expert Steuart Bedford conducting Britten's Death in Venice. The Dutch conductor Jac van Steen conducts Richard Strauss's Intermezzo.

Mozart's Cosi fan tutte will be conducted by Garsington Opera's artistic director Douglas Boyd, and directed by John Fulljames with the lovers played, Andreea Soare, Kathryn Rudge, Robin Tritschler and Ashley Riches with Lesley Garrett as Despina and Neal Davies as Don Alfonso (first night 5 June 2015).

Richard Strauss's late autobiographical comedy Intermezzo will be conducted by Jac van Steen and directed by Bruno Ravella with Kate Valentine and Mark Stone as Christine and Robert Storch, plus Ailish Tynan as Anna. The opera will be sung in English (first night 6 June 2015).

Benjamin Britten's last opera Death in Venice will be conducted by Steuart Bedford and directed by Paul Curran with Paul Nilon as Aschenbach and William Dazeley (first night 21 June 2015).

Shakespeare's play A Midsummer Night's Dream will be performed in abridged form with Mendelssohn's incidental music with actors from the Royal Shakespeare Company directed by Gregory Doran, joining the Garsington Opera Orchestra conducted by Douglas Boyd (firt night  16 July 2015).