James Clutton

Directed from the piano by Lada Valešová, tenor Nicky Spence and the Navarra Quartet perform Pavel Haas's song cycle Fata Morgana Op. 6 to mark Holocaust Memorial Day, streamed on Opera Holland Park's YouTube and Facebook channels from 6pm on Wednesday 27 January.

Opera Holland Park unfortunately couldn't proceed with its planned 2020 summer season, but this very special venue was among the first to leap into action with a series of open-air concerts instead - from all-star operatic galas to a dash of musical theatre with Sondheim's A Little Night Music (read our review here). James Clutton, Director of Opera at OHP, tells BroadwayWorld about how they made the shows work with Covid-19 safety measures, why opera is for all, and his hopes for returning at full strength in 2021.

The show must go on: it's been the rallying cry of our beleaguered industry, the message emblazoned on Theatre Support Fund+'s T-shirts and mugs. On Saturday night, we saw that fighting spirit in person, as Janie Dee, co-producer and star of this concert version of Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler's A Little Night Music, marched into a pitiless downpour and cried to the heavens, 'Don't you love farce?!'. As far as spine-tinglingly theatrical moments go, that one will be hard to top.

Among the hopeful shoots of returning theatre is a new concert version of Stephen Sondheima??s A Little Night Music, coming to Opera Holland Park on 15 August. West End leading lady Janie Dee is wearing two hats for this project: shea??s both starring as Desiree, and co-producing with Alex Parker. She talked to us about her lockdown experience and the pleasure of reprising a great role.

Opera Holland Park's James Clutton, Michael Volpe and Charles Mackay (Chairman) have released a statement on behalf of The Trustees, management and staff at Opera Holland Park:

The International Opera Awards today announced the finalists for its 2020 Awards [Wednesday 5 February 2020]. The annual red-carpet event - which celebrates achievement in opera around the globe over the 2019 calendar year - recognises excellence in a wide range of categories that cover performance, design and direction as well as education and outreach.

After 31 years at Opera Holland Park, Michael Volpe, General Director, has decided to take early retirement from his role with the company. This will take effect from 30 September 2020, after the 2020 Season and at the end of the 2019/2020 financial year.

Gareth Malone and the Opera Holland Park Community Chorus reunite for a special performance at International Opera Awards 2019 – the annual red-carpet gala event on 29 April celebrating achievements in opera – performing at the event for the first time.  Performing 'Help Me Believe' – a piece commissioned by Opera Holland Park for its Hope for Grenfell Memorial Gala last year – the Chorus will join a starry line-up of some of the biggest names in opera, including Joyce El-Khoury and Charles Castronovo. Highlights from the ceremony, presented by Petroc Trelawny, will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3 on Monday 6 May.

The International Opera Awards today announces the finalists for its 2019 Awards.

Manon Lescaut, sponsored by Viking Cruises, opens the season with the British lyric soprano Elizabeth Llewellyn in the title role. Named 'Best newcomer in opera' by The Telegraph in 2010 following her operatic debut as Mimi in La boheme at English National Opera, Llewellyn has gone from strength to strength on the international stage. She was last at OHP in 2017, as Magda in La rondine. The Welsh bass-baritone Paul Carey Jones makes his OHP debut as Lescaut. His recent career highlights include his Royal Opera House debut in The Nose and the Scottish premiere of Philip Glass's The Trial with Scottish Opera.

40 young people aged between 15 and 21, who have recently arrived in the UK and are seeking asylum, are creating their own mini-opera for Investec Opera Holland Park's (OHP) stage. Refuge in Harmony, a project devised by OHP in partnership with the British Red Cross, is a platform for these young people to tell their stories, re-establish identities and gain confidence via the instinctive languages of music and drama. The group is creating its own 20-minute performance piece with the help of composer Laura Bowler, director Ruth Mariner and OHP singers Nicholas Garrett, Joanna Harries, Felix Kemp and Nicola Said.

Investec Opera Holland Park was announced as the winner of the 'Education & Outreach' category of the International Opera Awards at the London Coliseum last night. The award recognises OHP's Inspire programme, which since 2010 has been working to bring opera to all via accessible ticket schemes and projects for social inclusion, health and wellbeing, and education.

The International Opera Awards are pleased to announce the finalists for this year's Awards. These were selected by an international jury chaired by John Allison, editor of Opera magazine and classical music critic with The Daily Telegraph: 'It's gratifying to see how the International Opera Awards just keep growing. With a record number of nominations to consider, and our biggest and most international jury yet, I'm delighted to say that our exciting shortlists-covering six continents and around 30 countries-reflect the truly cosmopolitan nature of the art form. Despite the challenges faced by opera companies almost everywhere, opera is vibrantly alive.'

Mascagni's Isabeau, set to open at Investec Opera Holland Park (OHP) on 14 July 2018, will be a co-production with New York City Opera (NYCO). Performances in New York will take place in spring 2019, on dates to be announced.

The winner of the 10th European Opera Directing Prize (EOP) will direct Puccini's Manon Lescaut at Investec Opera Holland Park in 2019. Launched in 2000, the EOP has been hosted by opera houses across Europe but 2019 will be its first time in the UK.

A memorial performance of Verdi's Requiem will take place at Investec Opera Holland Park (OHP) on Tuesday 1 August 2017, to support those affected by the Grenfell Tower fire. All proceeds will go to the Rugby Portobello Trust (RPT), which has been working closely with victims of the Grenfell Tower tragedy and with which OHP has a long association. Tickets are on sale from today, priced at £35, £25 and £20. They can be purchased online or by telephone and donations can also be made online.

The winners of the 2017 International Opera Awards were announced tonight in a ceremony held for the first time at the London Coliseum and were once again hosted by BBC Radio 3 presenter Petroc Trelawny.

It's the first day of production rehearsals for the Opera Holland Park 2017 season. Following months of preparation, from countless meetings and costume fittings to music rehearsals and props buying, today is the day everyone - the conductor, director, designer, principal singers, chorus, lighting designer, stage management, wardrobe and costume staff and technical staff - all start work full time.

With more than 20,000 nominations made, the International Opera Awards is pleased to announce the finalists for this year's Awards. These were selected by an international jury chaired by John Allison, editor of Opera magazine and classical music critic with The Daily Telegraph, 'Once again, it was both a challenge and a pleasure for us to produce these shortlists, and I am very grateful to our distinguished jury. The quality of the nominations—received in record numbers this year—was very high, and I hope our lists prove that for all the difficulties faced by the world's opera companies, opera is in fact in a healthy and vibrant state.'

With more than 20,000 nominations made, the International Opera Awards has just announced the finalists for this year's Awards.