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Pre-show talk: Siegfried

Summer 2013

19th Jun - 6th Jul 2013

Nationwide

Touring 4 theatres

Adult ticket: Tickets are free but must be booked in advance

Pre-show talk: Siegfried

Cropped_siegfried_web_resize Synopsis

Opera North's Editor, Stuart Leeks explores the third part of Wagner's epic Ring cycle.

Next Performances
Sat 22nd Jun Birmingham Symphony Hall
Sat 29th Jun Gateshead Sage
Sat 6th Jul Salford Quays The Lowry
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Music: Nils Frahm

Summer 2013

10th Jul 2013

Leeds

Howard Assembly Room

Adult ticket: £12.50

Music: Nils Frahm

Synopsis

‘A remarkable tumble through the sounds and shapes of his imagination’ Drowned In Sound

Berlin-based pianist and composer Nils Frahm creates his own personal microcosm on stage, a structure of delicate piano sound that has at times a simple, Satie- like joyfulness while at others finds deep resonances from the depths of the piano.

Always restrained yet compelling, his rise has been inexorable in the eighteen months since the release of his hyper-intimate third album ‘Felt’ in 2011.  This one-off UK performance is his first since a brilliant London show at the Hackney Empire in 2012, which marked the 5th Anniversary of his record label Erased Tapes.

With support from: Nancy Eilzabeth


Save 20% at the Howard Assembly Room: Buy tickets for two or more shows displaying the 'Save' symbol (only available when you book in person or by phone, not available on-line).

Next Performances
Wed 10th Jul Leeds Howard Assembly Room
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Leeds

Howard Assembly Room

Adult ticket: £7.50

Opera North Children’s Chorus: Summer Showcase

Cropped_oncc Synopsis

Join Opera North’s very own Children’s Chorus as they celebrate another exciting year of music making with this end of year Summer Showcase.  Celebrating some of the city’s finest young talent, this informal concert will feature a light and lively programme of music, including works by Benjamin Britten, Cesar Franck and Henry Purcell, as well as exciting new commissions especially written for young voices. 

Featuring special guest soprano Bibi Heal.

Next Performances
Thu 11th Jul Leeds Howard Assembly Room
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Inside Opera special: Siegfried

Spring 2013

13th Jul 2013

Leeds

Howard Assembly Room

Adult ticket: Free (tickets must be booked in advance)

Inside Opera special: Siegfried

Cropped_siegfried_web_resize Synopsis

Matthew d'Ancona, Martin Pickard and Michael Tanner explore Siegfried and the idea of 'a hero'.

Next Performances
Sat 13th Jul Leeds Howard Assembly Room
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Siegfried

Summer 2013

15th Jun - 13th Jul 2013

Nationwide

Touring 4 theatres

Adult ticket: £17.50 - £51

Siegfried

Synopsis

Richard Wagner (1876)

Of all the operas in Wagner’s monumental music drama ‘Der Ring des Nibelungen’, the third, Siegfried, tells a story that most resembles a fairy tale. Bold and fearless, the young hero Siegfried seeks ever increasing challenges and adventures. Forging an unbreakable sword from the shards of the weapon that belonged to his father, he slays the dragon Fafner and seizes from the dragon’s hoard the ring that gives its bearer power over the world. But when he awakens the sleeping Brünnhilde after penetrating the magic fire surrounding her, he encounters his greatest challenge – to win over her love.

Wagner’s unparalleled orchestral scene-painting reaches new heights in this work, and the closing love duet for Siegfried and Brünnhilde, completed after Wagner had composed Tristan und Isolde, has a blazing erotic intensity in common with that work.

Siegfried is conducted by Richard Farnes, who, following the first two instalments of Opera North’s Ring, has been praised as the country’s eminent Wagnerian. The unrivalled power and vividness of Wagner’s music will again be translated into evocative and atmospheric lighting and film projections by Peter Mumford.

An international cast is headed by the Estonian tenor Mati Turi and the Swedish soprano Annalena Persson; and Michael Druiett returns to sing the role of The Wanderer following his acclaimed performances of Wotan in Das Rheingold in 2011. 

Bringing alive the full scale and splendour of Wagner’s magnificent conception, this is the perfect occasion to celebrate Wagner’s bicentenary. 

The performance will finish at approximately 10.20pm
Please note: performance time includes two intervals, one of 30 minutes, and one of 1 hour 15 minutes.

Approximate timings (these times are subject to change slightly at each performance venue):

Act 1: 16.30 - 17.50
interval: 17.50 - 18.20
Act 2: 18.20 - 19.40
interval: 19.35 - 20.50
Act 3: 20.50 - 22.15

Sung in German with English titles.

A collaboration with The Sage Gateshead and Symphony Hall, Birmingham.

Financially supported by the Opera North Future Fund and The Ring Fellowship.

Next Performances
Sat 22nd Jun Birmingham Symphony Hall
Sat 29th Jun Gateshead Sage
Sat 6th Jul Salford Quays The Lowry
Sat 13th Jul Leeds Leeds Town Hall
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Opera in the Park

Summer 2013

27th Jul 2013

Leeds

Temple Newsam Park

Adult ticket: £10

Opera in the Park

Cropped_opera-in-the-park-2 Synopsis

Set in the stunning surroundings of Temple Newsam Park, Opera in the Park is one of the highlight events of the year in Leeds. 

Aled Jones will return to the event after his first appearance at Temple Newsam in 2011 to perform and compere the evening. He will be introducing to the stage the Classic Brit Award-nominee Laura Wright, who is one of the biggest-selling classical artists of the decade following a meteoric rise to stardom. Also featuring will be rising stars Amore – the quartet made up of David Webb, Monica McGhee, Peter Brathwaite and Victoria Gray. 

The music for the evening will be performed by acclaimed Orchestra of Opera North together with the Leeds Festival Chorus conducted by Martin Andre.

Organised by Leeds City Council with media partners Classic FM.

Times: Gates will open from 6pm with performances starting at 8pm and ending at approximately 10.15pm with a firework finale. Please note that all timings are subject to change.

Next Performances
Sat 27th Jul Leeds Temple Newsam Park
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Ripon

Ripon Cathedral

Adult ticket: £12 - £28

The Orchestra of Opera North: Ripon International Festival

Cropped_orchestra-generic-event-image Synopsis

Exuberant Dvorak, sublime Mozart, and Tchaikovsky at his most innovative and passionate: an evening of music to dazzle the senses and grip the emotions. The Fourth Symphony - its brass fanfare, representing Fate, a memorable, terrifying opening - is a work of blazing emotional intensity, relieved by soaring melodies and the delicate, dance-like pizzicato movement. Janusz Piotrowicz  is renowned for his electrifying performances: “he took the  Orchestra of Opera North to the edge of their combined virtuosity ... adding that final tingle factor”  Yorkshire Post

Presented by Ripon International Festival

Conductor: Janusz Piotrowicz  
Horn: Robert Ashworth  

Dvorak Carnival Overture, Slavonic Dances
Mozart Horn Concerto no 3 in E  
Tchaikovsky Symphony no 4   

Next Performances
Sat 7th Sep Ripon Ripon Cathedral
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Peter Grimes

Autumn 2013

14th Sep - 23rd Nov 2013

Nationwide

Touring 4 theatres

Adult ticket: £15 - £63.50

Peter Grimes

Cropped_peter-grimes-web Synopsis

Revival of 2006 production 

The operatic event of the yearThe Sunday Times

Set in a small fishing community on the English coast, this astounding opera is an utterly absorbing, emotionally compelling experience, not to be missed. Britten’s atmospheric music takes powerful inspiration from the sea, vividly portraying the human drama unfolding around the outsider Peter Grimes.

'A great stormy evening' The Independent

5 stars: The Guardian / The Independent / The Times

General on sale dates:

  • The Lowry, Salford Quays: 7 March
  • Theatre Royal, Nottingham: 18 March
  • Theatre Royal, Newcastle: 22 March
  • Leeds Grand Theatre: 17 July

Download our complete opera performance diary for 2013-14 here.

Next Performances
Sat 14th Sep Leeds Leeds Grand Theatre
Sat 21st Sep Leeds Leeds Grand Theatre
Fri 27th Sep Leeds Leeds Grand Theatre
Thu 10th Oct Leeds Leeds Grand Theatre
There are a total of 12 upcoming performances for this production
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A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Autumn 2013

28th Sep - 22nd Nov 2013

Nationwide

Touring 4 theatres

Adult ticket: £15 - £63.50

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Synopsis

Benjamin Britten

Revival of 2008 production

Britten’s opera sounds as good as it looksThe Independent

Oberon, the fairy king and Tytania, his queen are locked in a conflict which spills over into the human world. Shakespeare’s witty words and the composer’s mesmerising music come together in this colourful and vibrant production where costumes and music are equally sparkling.

4 stars: The Independent / The Times

General on sale dates:

  • The Lowry, Salford Quays: 7 March
  • Theatre Royal, Nottingham: 18 March
  • Theatre Royal, Newcastle: 22 March
  • Leeds Grand Theatre: 17 July

Download our complete opera performance diary for 2013-14 here.

Next Performances
Sat 28th Sep Leeds Leeds Grand Theatre
Sat 5th Oct Leeds Leeds Grand Theatre
Sat 12th Oct Leeds Leeds Grand Theatre
Fri 18th Oct Leeds Leeds Grand Theatre
There are a total of 11 upcoming performances for this production
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Death in Venice

Autumn 2013

17th Oct - 21st Nov 2013

Nationwide

Touring 5 theatres

Adult ticket: £15 - £63.50

Death in Venice

Cropped_death-in-venice-web Synopsis

Benjamin Britten

New production

Gustav von Aschenbach, a novelist in crisis, leaves Munich for Venice in search of fresh inspiration. Aschenbach is captivated by the beauty both of the place and Polish boy Tadzio. Britten’s sensual final opera is tinged with mortality, and an exotic orchestral score conveys the story to great dramatic effect.

This production is supported by a generous gift from Terry and Liz Bramall

General on sale dates:

  • The Lowry, Salford Quays: 7 March
  • Theatre Royal, Nottingham: 18 March
  • Theatre Royal, Newcastle: 22 March
  • Leeds Grand Theatre: 17 July

Download our complete opera performance diary for 2013-14 here.

Next Performances
Thu 17th Oct Leeds Leeds Grand Theatre
Sat 19th Oct Leeds Leeds Grand Theatre
Wed 23rd Oct Leeds Leeds Grand Theatre
Fri 25th Oct Leeds Leeds Grand Theatre
There are a total of 9 upcoming performances for this production
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Music: Tamikrest

Autumn 2013

18th Oct 2013

Leeds

Howard Assembly Room

Adult ticket: £15

Music: Tamikrest

Synopsis

'Tinariwen's angry little brothers are on the rise' Mojo on Tamikrest

Far from being your average band, Tamikrest are a collective of Tuareg musicians from Mali who started playing together in 2006. Inspired by Tinariwen and a new wave of violent civil unrest, their music is blazing the way for the second generation of African blues bands. 

Their songs combine a sense of ancient rhythm with qualities of hypnotic dub, psychedelic funk and an almost supernatural kind of desert garage. They sing in Tamashek and as each song unfolds, the groove deepens and Tamaschek chants merge with seemingly effortless but increasingly intense guitar riffs.  This tour marks the release of their third album Chatma in September 2013.

Tamikrest play at the Howard Assembly Room as part of a focus on West African music and politics in 2013. Other events include Etran Finatawa and a talk by ex-Tinariwen manager and Guardian journalist Andy Morgan.


Save 20% at the Howard Assembly Room: Buy tickets for two or more shows displaying the 'Save' symbol (only available when you book in person or by phone, not available on-line).

Next Performances
Fri 18th Oct Leeds Howard Assembly Room
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Music: Michael Nyman

Autumn 2013

1st Nov 2013

Leeds

Howard Assembly Room

Adult ticket: £22.50 (reserved seating)

Music: Michael Nyman

Cropped_michael-nyman-by-sheila-rock-web-res Synopsis

Michael Nyman performs a very rare evening of piano music and film. The renowned composer plays solo piano music from the films on which he has collaborated, including that of Peter Greenaway, Jane Campion and Neil Jordan. He also accompanies a selection of the 70 films that he himself has filmed by observing the lives of people during his travels around the world. The show is a fascinating insight into the visual and musical world of Michael Nyman.

Next Performances
Fri 1st Nov Leeds Howard Assembly Room
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