Wild Arts Reveals Summer 2026 Season

Wild Arts has announced e its Summer 2026 Opera Tour, featuring new productions of Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro - with a directorial debut from international opera star Danielle de Niese - and a new version of the company's popular show An Evening of Opera, directed by Guido Martin-Brandis.

Orlando Jopling, Artistic Director of Wild Arts, says, "We are absolutely thrilled to welcome Danielle de Niese to the creative team for this summer's production of The Marriage of Figaro. Danielle brings an extraordinary instinct for character, storytelling, and emotional truth, qualities that sit at the very heart of how we make opera. Her experience as one of the world's great singers and actresses, combined with her infectious energy and imagination, makes her a perfect fit for Wild Arts. We can't wait to explore the magic of Figaro together and to share this fresh, intimate take on this iconic cornerstone of opera with audiences across the country."

The Marriage of Figaro

Touring 5 June - 27 September

Wild Arts opera production for Summer 2026 is Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro, presented in a fresh, intimate new staging by soprano Danielle de Niese in her directorial debut. The work will also feature the premiere of a new chamber orchestration and English translation by Wild Arts Artistic Director Orlando Jopling, and designs by Laura Jane Stanfield.

Mozart's comedic opera of mistaken identities sees Jack Sandison as Figaro, Ellie Neate as Susanna, Timothy Nelson as Count Almaviva and Elinor Rolfe Johnson as the Countess. The cast also features Abbie Ward as Cherubino and Olivia Ray as Marcellina, as well as Timothy Dawkins, William Searle and Eleanor O'Driscoll. Continuing in its commitment to support artists in the early stages of their careers, Wild Arts places exceptional talent at the heart of every production, with soloists also performing chorus roles in a deliberately intimate staging.

The Marriage of Figaro will visit to over twenty locations across England, opening with a three-night run at the Wild Arts Summer Opera Festival at Layer Marney Tower, Essex (5 - 7 June), before touring to regional theatres and festivals, as well as making a return visit to Opera Holland Park (22 August). The tour concludes at The Rep, Birmingham (27 September).

Danielle de Niese, director of The Marriage of Figaro, says, "It is a great honour to be invited to direct for the first time. I feel my work on the stage has been recognised by my peers and having had a producer role in the BBC's La Voix Humaine, I am excited to add another string to my bow in this directing debut. My artistic identity has always been rooted in a deep synthesis between singing and storytelling, character exploration, and the personal investment in and interpretation of any role I take on. That's why the ethos of Wild Arts resonated so much - their intimate, beautifully stripped-back approach puts the characters and story front and centre and I couldn't be more excited to be working with such an authentic and inspiring company for this new production of The Marriage of Figaro."

An Evening of Opera

Touring 22 May - 16 August

An Evening of Opera is Wild Arts' accessible introduction to opera, performed by four singers and a string quintet. The show brings together favourite opera arias and ensembles alongside numbers from classic musicals, into a narrative designed to welcome newcomers while delighting seasoned audiences.

A new version of the show is created each year. The 2026 edition is devised and directed by Guido Martin-Brandis, who previously collaborated with Wild Arts on its acclaimed production of Donizetti's The Elixir of Love.

The tour will visit historic houses across Essex, East Anglia, Cotswolds, South West and Wales.

The Marriage of Figaro Tour Dates

Fri 5 - Sun 7 Jun The Wild Arts Summer Opera Festival, Layer Marney Tower, Essex

Sun 14 Jun Kelvedon Hall, Essex

Fri 26 Jun Northern Aldborough Festival, Yorkshire

Sun 28 Jun Heronsgate, Sherwood, Hertfordshire

Sat 4 Jul Borde Hill, West Sussex

Sun 5 Jul Thaxted Festival, Essex

Fri 10 Jul Falconhurst, Kent

Sat 11 Jul Deal Festival, Kent

Wed 15 Jul Malvern Festival Theatre, Worcestershire

Thu 16 Jul Owlpen Manor, Gloucestershire

Tue 21 Jul Ham Court, Bampton, Oxfordshire

Wed 22 Jul Forde Abbey, Somerset

Fri 31 Jul Doddington Hall, Lincolnshire

Sat 1 Aug Schwarzman Centre, Oxford

Fri 7 Aug Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford, Surrey

Sun 9 Aug Cheltenham Everyman Theatre, Gloucestershire

Fri 14 Aug Thorington Theatre, Suffolk

Sat 22 Aug Opera Holland Park, London

Thu 3 & Fri 4 Sep The Minack Theatre, Cornwall

Sun 6 Sep Titsey Place, Surrey

Tue 8 Sep Norwich Theatre Royal, Norfolk

Sun 27 Sep The Rep, Birmingham

An Evening of Opera Tour Dates

Fri 22 May Winchester College, Winchester, Hampshire

Sun 24 May Thorington Theatre, Suffolk

Mon 8 Jun Hall Barn, Nr Beaconsfireld, Buckinghamshire

Thu 18 Jun Myddelton House Gardens, Essex

Fri 19 Jun Birdsong, Oxshott, Surrey (in aid of Target Ovarian Cancer)

Tue 30 Jun Boconnoc House, Nr Bodmin, Cornwall

Wed 1 Jul Hall, Nr Barnstaple, Devon

Fri 3 Jul Dunster Castle, Nr Minehead, Somerset

Thu 9 Jul St Augustine's Abbey, Canterbury, Kent

Mon 13 Jul Sudeley Castle & Gardens, Gloucestershire

Tue 14 Jul Treberfydd House, Powys

Fri 17 Jul Painswick Rococo Garden, Gloucestershire,

Sun 19 Jul Berkeley Castle, Gloucestershire

Thu 23 Jul Forde Abbey, Somerset

Sat 25 Jul Hill Place, Hampshire

Sun 26 Jul Great Ruffins, Beacon Hill, Essex

Tue 28 Jul Ham Court, Bampton Circus, Oxfordshire

Wed 29 Jul Homme House, Herefordshire

Sun 2 Aug Taynton, Oxfordshire

Sat 15 Aug & Sun 16 Aug The Hangar at Barn Drift, Nr Cley next the Sea, Norfolk

Sat 29 Aug Alresford Hall, Essex

Sat 5 Sep Titsey Place, Surrey