University College Opera
opera company | |
| Location |
|
|---|---|
Parent organization | Students' Union UCL |
| Affiliations | UCL Symphony Orchestra UCL Symphony Chorus |
| Website | ucopera.co.uk |
University College Opera, or UCOpera, is the student opera company of
in 2024.History
The brainchild of the conductor Anthony Addison, (
Bizet's Don Procopio (1955) and Lortzing's Der Wildschütz (1958). In 1961, the company staged its first UK premiere, Moniuszko's Halka
.
During its first 17 years, UCOpera's performances took place in the old gymnasium at University College. With the opening of the college's
Verdi's Alzira
(1970).
A highlight for the company under the directorship of David Drummond (who served from 1992 to 2001) was UCOpera's world premiere staging of César Franck's Hulda in its complete form. The 1994 production used a score which Drummond restored from the composer's original manuscript.[6] Drummond's last performance as the company's Director coincided with its 50th anniversary, the 2001 UK premiere of Aulis Sallinen's Kullervo.[7]
Under the directorship of Charles Peebles, UCOpera has produced British premieres of
Since 2022, UCOpera has been under the baton of Matt Scott Rogers. The first UCOpera production under Rogers was Carlisle Floyd's Susannah (2023). This was followed in 2024 by the company's UK première of Robert Ward's The Crucible, adapted from the celebrated Arthur Miller play of the same name.
Productions since 2001
| Year | Production[9] | Composer | Conductor | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | The Crucible* | Robert Ward | Matt Scott Rogers | Eleanor Strutt |
| 2023 | Susannah | Carlisle Floyd | Matt Scott Rogers | Isabelle Kettle |
| 2022 | La naissance d'Osiris[10] | Rameau | Charles Peebles | Annelise Bucher (choreographer) |
| 2022 | Thamos, König in Ägypten (incidental music)[10] | Mozart
|
Charles Peebles | concert performance |
| 2019 | Libuše*[5] | Smetana
|
Charles Peebles | Cecilia Stinton |
| 2018 | Polyeucte*[4] | Gounod
|
Charles Peebles | Thomas Guthrie |
| 2017 | Aroldo[11] | Verdi
|
Charles Peebles | Pia Furtado |
| 2016 | La favorite[12] | Gaetano Donizetti | Charles Peebles | John Ramster |
| 2015 | Amadis de Gaule[13]
|
Johann Christian Bach | Charles Peebles | Jack Furness |
| 2014 | The Snowmaiden | Rimsky-Korsakov
|
Charles Peebles | Christopher Cowell |
| 2013 | I Lombardi | Verdi
|
Charles Peebles | Jamie Hayes |
| 2012 | Acante et Céphise* | Rameau | Charles Peebles | Christopher Cowell |
| 2011 | The Three Pintos (Die Drei Pintos) | Weber/Mahler | Charles Peebles | John Ramster |
| 2010 | Genoveva | Schumann | Charles Peebles | Emma Rivlin |
| 2009 | Macbeth* | Bloch | Charles Peebles | John Ramster |
| 2008 | Fiesque* | Lalo | Charles Peebles | Emma Rivlin |
| 2007 | Camacho's Wedding | Mendelssohn | Charles Peebles | Duncan Macfarland |
| 2006 | Alfonso und Estrella | Schubert
|
Charles Peebles | Stephen Barlow |
| 2005 | Whittington | Offenbach | Charles Peebles | Jamie Hayes |
| 2004 | Vanda* | Dvořák | Charles Peebles | Matthias Janser |
| 2003 | Ciboulette* | Hahn | Charles Peebles | Daniele Guerra |
| 2002 | Benvenuto Cellini | Berlioz
|
Charles Peebles | Jamie Hayes |
| 2001 | Kullervo* | Sallinen | David Drummond | Paul Curran |
(* denotes British premières)
Productions 1951 to 2000[9]
| Year | Production | Composer |
|---|---|---|
| 1951 | Dido and Aeneas | Purcell
|
| 1951 | Bastien and Bastienne
|
Mozart
|
| 1952 | Merry Wives of Windsor | Nicolai |
| 1953 | La Clemenza di Tito
|
Mozart
|
| 1954 | L'elisir d'amore | Donizetti
|
| 1955 | Don Procopio | Bizet
|
| 1955 | Bastien and Bastienne
|
Mozart
|
| 1956 | Il Turco in Italia
|
Rossini
|
| 1957 | The Devil and Kate | Dvořák
|
| 1958 | Der Wildschutz
|
Lortzing
|
| 1959 | The Barber of Baghdad
|
Cornelius |
| 1960 | Beatrice and Benedict
|
Berlioz
|
| 1961 | Halka* | Moniuszko |
| 1962 | Lodoïska
|
Cherubini |
| 1963 | I due Foscari | Verdi
|
| 1964 | Sorochyntsi Fair | Mussorgsky
|
| 1965 | Das Liebesverbot* | Wagner
|
| 1966 | Die Feuersbrunst* | Haydn
|
| 1967 | Poliuto | Donizetti
|
| 1967 | Le cadi dupé | Gluck
|
| 1967 | Livietta e Tracollo | Pergolesi |
| 1967 | The Tide | Blacher |
| 1968 | Bánk Bán *
|
Erkel |
| 1969 | Leonore** | Beethoven
|
| 1970 | Alzira* | Verdi
|
| 1971 | Armide | Gluck
|
| 1972 | Hans Heiling | Marschner
|
| 1973 | Stiffelio | Verdi
|
| 1974 | Clytemnestra | Wishart |
| 1975 | Euryanthe | Weber |
| 1976 | Macbeth (1st Version)* | Verdi
|
| 1977 | Saul and David *
|
Nielsen |
| 1978 | The Maid of Orleans* | Tchaikovsky
|
| 1979 | Attila | Verdi
|
| 1980 | The Duenna* | Prokofiev
|
| 1981 | Hérodiade | Massenet
|
| 1982 | Oberto* | Verdi
|
| 1983 | Gwendoline* | Chabrier |
| 1984 | Faust | Spohr |
| 1985 | Le Villi | Puccini
|
| 1985 | Edgar | Puccini
|
| 1986 | Die Loreley *
|
Bruch |
| 1987 | The Devil's Wall* | Smetana
|
| 1988 | Il Corsaro
|
Verdi
|
| 1989 | Giovanna d'Arco | Verdi
|
| 1990 | Un Giorno di Regno
|
Verdi
|
| 1991 | Lakmé | Delibes |
| 1992 | Le Roi d'Ys
|
Lalo |
| 1993 | Ruslan and Ludmila | Glinka |
| 1994 | Hulda** | Franck |
| 1995 | La Wally | Catalani |
| 1996 | The Ballad of Baby Doe** | Moore |
| 1997 | The King and the Marshal* | Heise |
| 1998 | Mignon | Thomas |
| 1999 | Mazeppa | Tchaikovsky
|
| 2000 | The Jewels of the Madonna
|
Wolf-Ferrari |
(* denotes British premières)
(** denotes world premières)
References
- Notes
- ^ Maycock (24 March 1995)
- ^ Hall (12 March 2008)
- ^ Elleson (March 2009)
- ^ a b "Polyeucte, UC Opera, Theatre Royal, Stratford East, March 2018". 20 March 2018. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
- ^ a b Anna Picard (19 March 2019). "Review: Libuse at the Bloomsbury Theatre, WC1". The Times. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
- ^ Maycock (24 March 1994)
- ^ Kimberley (29 March 2001)
- ^ "UCOpera | Haydn: L'anima del filosofo". ucopera.co.uk. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
- ^ a b UCOpera. "UCOpera - Past Productions". ucopera.co.uk. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
- ^ a b "UCOpera 2022 Programme". Internet Archive. 25 March 2022. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
- ^ Picard, Anna (23 March 2017). "Opera: Aroldo at the Theatre Royal Stratford East, E15". Retrieved 4 April 2018 – via www.thetimes.co.uk.
- ^ Christiansen, Rupert (17 March 2016). "La Favorite - Another Donizetti rarity gets a welcome revival". The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 April 2018 – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
- ^ Andrew Pink (October 2015). "UCOpera's production of Amadis de Gaule" (PDF). UCL Chamber Music Club Newsletter. No. 5. p. 9. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
- Sources
- Christiansen, Rupert, "South Seas romp for desert island Dick"[dead link] (review of Offenbach's Whittington), The Daily Telegraph, 26 March 2005. Retrieved 8 March 2008.
- Elleson, Ruth, "Bloch's Macbeth" (review), Opera Today, 30 March 2009.
- Hall, George "Fiesque" (review), The Guardian, 12 March 2008. Retrieved 13 March 2008.
- Kimberley, Nick, "Epic on a human scale"[dead link] (review of Sallinen's Kullervo), The Independent, 29 March 2001. Retrieved 8 March 2008.
- Maycock, Robert, "Out of the top drawer" (review of Franck's Hulda), The Independent, 24 March 1994
- Maycock, Robert, "Classical Music", The Independent, 24 March 1995
- University College Opera, Company history (official website)
External links
- University College Opera official website
- The Bloomsbury Theatre, the main venue for UCOpera performances
- UCOpera Photo Gallery
