Scottish Opera’s much-loved Pop-up Opera tours to audiences all over the country from 31 May, with performances of Gilbert & Sullivan’s celebrated comic operas A Little Bit of The Gondoliers and A Little Bit of The Pirates of Penzance, and children’s opera, Puffy MacPuffer and the Crabbit Canals.
The Company has joined forces with Scottish Canals to bring public Pop-up performances to the Union Canal, Edinburgh, The Falkirk Wheel, Caledonian Canal Centre in Fort Augustus, The Egg Shed at Crinan Canal, on board a barge in partnership with Forth & Clyde Canal Society, and Stockingfield Bridge in Glasgow, in partnership with North United Communities.
There will be additional performances in communities at Dumfries & Galloway Arts Festival in Sanquhar, Moniaive, Musselburgh, Cupar, Charlestown, Milngavie, Coatbridge (at Monkland Canal), Lochcarron, Cruden Bay, Kirriemuir, Ayr and East Kilbride.
There will also be free schools performances in Dumfries & Galloway, West Lothian, West Dunbartonshire, North Lanarkshire, Strathcarron, Fort Augustus, Perth, Dundee and Aberdeenshire.
In addition, Scottish Opera will be offering illustration workshops to local primary schools in some venues so they can meet and draw the characters from Puffy MacPuffer & the Crabbit Canals before coming along to see the show.
Scottish Opera’s productions use ten specially created illustrations to help the performers — storytellers Allan Dunn and Katie Barnett, along with singers Jessica Leary, Holly Teague, Colin Murray and Paul Grant, cellist Andrew Drummond Huggan and guitarists Sasha Savaloni and Luke Anderson — present the story.
Scottish Opera’sDirector of Outreach & Education, Jane Davidson MBE said: ‘This year we are once again delighted to bring our miniature musical tales to locations across the country.
‘Gilbert & Sullivan’s topsy-turvy nautical adventures will be navigating the waterways from Penzance to Venice, and we will be stopping at some of Scotland’s most beautiful canalside spots.’
Scottish Canals CEO John Paterson said: ‘We are delighted to be able to bring opera to our canalside locations this summer.
‘Partnering with Scottish Opera allows us to both deliver a truly unique, entertaining, and accessible experience for all.
‘I would encourage everyone to get out and about this summer, and enjoy some canal magic as our canal corridors become the perfect stage for these performances’
Cleverlyre-scored by Scottish Opera’s former Head of Music, Derek Clark, in A Little Bit of The Pirates of Penzance, a young man bound by an overactive sense of duty, a soft-hearted pirate king with a hopeless band of rogues at his side, a beautiful young girl, a very modern major-general and an ineffectual bevy of policemen add to a plot hinging on the technicalities of having a birthday on the 29th of February. What could possibly go wrong?
A Little Bit of The Gondoliers satirises the ruling classes and their position within society, with the tale of two happy-go-lucky gondoliers who discover that one of them is the heir to the throne of a distant kingdom. In a show packed full of fun, the gondoliers set off to rule with an idealistic – if somewhat chaotic – plan.
Created specifically for five to eight year olds, with music and words by Marion Christie, PuffyMacPuffer & The Crabbit Canals is a tale of the five waterways that link Scotland from the North Sea to the Atlantic. Like most families, each one is different: Caledonian – the longest; Crinan – the most beautiful; hard-working Monkland; Union – the fastest; wise old Forth & Clyde. Each one thinks they’re the best. Can an ordinary little puffer boat make them think again?
These 30-minute shows take opera out of the theatre into unexpected places, and are ideal for anyone new to the artform.
Pop-up Opera was originally inspired by the ancient Japanese art of Kamishibai (which roughly translates as ‘paper story’), a form of entertainment where itinerant storytellers travelled between small communities, telling traditional folk tales using a set of small paintings to accompany the narrative.
Pop-up Opera is supported by Friends of Scottish Opera.
Scottish Opera’s award-winning animated short film Josefine will screen at The Scotsman Picturehouse in Edinburgh on 25 March, with showings at 4.30pm and 6.30pm.
The 14-minute film, Scottish Opera’s first venture into animation, brings Franz Kafka’s last short story ‘Josefine the Singer’ to life through a unique blend of operatic performance and contemporary animation.
Set in a striking desert landscape, the story follows a mysterious creature whose ethereal voice captures an audience of sprites, exploring themes of artistry, crisis and hope.
After watching the film (produced in partnership with Maestro Broadcasting), audiences will hear director Antonia Bain, Scottish Opera’s resident filmmaker, composer Samuel Bordoli, andconductor Susannah Wapshott, in conversation with The Scotsman’s classical music critic, Ken Walton, about how the animation came together.
Josefine’s soundtrack features 2022/23 Emerging Artist soprano Zoe Drummond, a chorus, and The Orchestra of Scottish Opera. It was animated by a team headed by Sophie Bird.
At last year’sMessina Film Festival – Cinema & Opera, Josefine was chosen from 1400 entries to receive the Emi Mammoliti Award for best short film. This award adds to the growing list of laurels for Josefine which was named Best Animation at this year’s Cannes Arts Film Fest, Mannheim Arts and Film Festival Winner for Best Family and Children Friendly, and received an Honourable Mention in Animation. It has been screened at festivals all over the world, including Vienna’s Rathausplatz and the Venice Biennale.
Alex Reedijk, Scottish Opera General Director said: ‘We’re delighted to present Josefine, Scottish Opera’s first ever opera animation, at The Scotsman Picturehouse, in partnership with The Scotsman.
“This film represents our commitment to pushing creative boundaries and finding new ways to present opera, and it will be wonderful to see it in this special Edinburgh venue.
“There’s also the added bonus of listening to Ken Walton, with his wealth of classical music knowledge, speak to the creative team behind this animation. We look forward to welcoming you to this unique event.’
Director Antonia Bain said: ‘Josefine was born as a response to arts place in a time of crisis. It’s also a story about parenthood, a child discovering their talent, nurturing creativity, how to search for hope within when there seems to be only darkness outside, and most importantly the beauty of the voice and the overwhelming power of music to nourish the human soul.
‘Loosely inspired by Franz Kafka’s last short story ‘Josefine the Singer’, which looks at the relationship a singer has with her impoverished audience who find solace in her singing but have no time for her creative demands, was first introduced to me by my friend and collaborator, the composer and librettist Samuel Bordoli.
‘Creating Josefine has been a dream come true for our whole team and we all fell in love with this beautiful little character. It has been amazing to see her sing in cinema’s across the world, from New York to Venice, to a packed audience on an outdoor screen in Vienna and then winning the best short film award at the Messina Opera and Cinema festival in Sicily.
‘I’m absolutely thrilled then, that Josefine is coming home to Scotland and I can’t wait to watch the film together with all of the creative team, my friends and family and Scottish audiences for the first time.’
Josefine is also showing at Northampton Film Festival on 8 March, and at Glasgow Short Film Festival on 21 March, so this is another brilliant opportunity to see the UK’s first newly commissioned opera made specifically for animation, on the big screen.
Tickets for Josefine at The Scotsman Picturehouse are available from:
Scottish Opera’s much-loved Primary Schools Tour visits over 120 schools from 3 February until 27 June with The Tale o’ Tam o’ Shanter, a show created to re-introduce young people to the works of celebrated poet, Robert Burns.
Based on Tam o’ Shanter, this fast-paced adventure was written especially for children in primaries 5, 6 and 7, and the fully-booked tour heads to schools in Glasgow, Ayrshire, Edinburgh, Falkirk, Stirling, the Highlands, Clackmannanshire, Aberdeen, Angus, Fife, Lanarkshire, Argyll and Bute, East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, the Scottish Borders, West Lothian and Shetland, as well as Newcastle.
Last performed in 2017, The Tale o’ Tam o’ Shanter features original lyrics by Ross Stenhouse and music by Karen MacIver, who composed the score for Special Delivery, the Christmas 2024 co-production between Scottish Opera, Visible Fictions and Lanterhouse at Cumbernauld Theatre. She also wrote the music for RED, performed by Scottish Opera Young Company last summer.
The show follows the farmer Tam o’ Shanter, as he makes his way home from market day with his faithful horse Meg. As the night grows darker, the rain falls and the wind shrieks through the branches of the trees, he finds himself outside the church where he discovers a coven of witches dancing. Fascinated, Tam stops to watch, but suddenly one of them spots him, and he and Meg must run for their lives.
Schools are provided with high quality, online teaching resources in advance, including a teachers’ support pack, to help introduce the songs from The Tale o’ Tam o’ Shanter to pupils. A team of Scottish Opera performers and arts education specialists then spend a day rehearsing and preparing the pupils for a 30-minute, choreographed, fully-costumed performance for family and friends, helping teachers deliver aspects of A Curriculum for Excellence.
Forming part of a suite of Scottish Opera’s digital offerings for schools, which includes The Curse of MacCabbra Opera House, How The Dragon Was Made, and Vikings! The Quest for the Dragon’s Treasure, The Tale o’ Tam o’ Shanter has been re-imagined and expanded to make it even more accessible and adaptable for all schools in Scotland to take part.
Schools can now engage with the production as a digital only learning and teaching experience, using online resources currently available on Scottish Opera’s website, to prepare the children for all aspects of presenting a performance to an audience.
This online delivery method — which includes Scottish Opera singers appearing on screen in classrooms to sing alongside the class — makes the project even easier and more affordable for teachers to engage with, particularly in those schools without specialist music teachers at primary level.
With 50-plus years of experience in classrooms, Scottish Opera’s Outreach and Education Programme has developed this approach because it recognised that the in-person learning Primary Schools Tour experience reaches capacity very quickly each year, so a complementary strand of the programme has been created in the form of a set of exclusivelyonline resources — so many more schools across Scotland can participate — and at a much lower cost per pupil.
Scottish Opera’s Director of Outreach and Education, Jane Davidson said: ‘Our children’s operas make learning both enjoyable and challenging, giving pupils the opportunity to engage their creative and expressive capacities.
“Originally commissioned in 2002, this vibrant interpretation of Burns’ iconic poem enables a new generation to explore the culture, identity and language that remain key to the enduring appeal of Scotland’s most famous poet.
“With the aim of making Tam accessible to many more schools, the project is now available in two formats, and both involve downloading digital resources which prepare them for performance.’
The Tale o’ Tam o’ Shanter is kindly supported by The Jean Armour Burns Trust, The David and June Gordon Memorial Trust, The Harbinson Charitable Trust, The W M Mann Foundation and Scottish Opera’s Education Angels.
Scottish Opera is delighted to welcome 15 rising stars from the National Opera Studio for a week long residency, culminating in Lust & Laughter at Theatre Royal Glasgow on 21 February.
Building on a 45 year-strong partnership, 11 singers and four repetiteurs work intensively for a week with Scottish Opera music staff to rehearse their repertoire, before taking to the stage with The Orchestra of Scottish Opera, conducted by Music Director, Stuart Stratford.
The director of the showcase is Emma Jenkins, who has previously directed for Scottish Opera the National Opera Studio’s Anarchy at the Opera performance in 2022, Opera Highlights 2022/23, and the critically acclaimed Scottish premiere of Strauss’ Daphne in 2023.
This international cohort consists of artists from all over the world, including South Africa, Russia and the UK, as well as Scottish soprano Rachel McLean, who graduated in 2023 with a Master of Music in Vocal Performance from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.
Audience members can look forward to afun and energetic show with a programme that includesexcerpts from Hansel & Gretel by Humperdinck, The Merry Wives of Windsor by Nicolai, Cendrillon by Massenet and Così fan tutte by Mozart.
Director Emma Jenkins said: ‘This showcase performance is a rollercoaster ride through fairy tale romances, vengeful encounters, love triangles and mistaken identity, all taking place on one crazy night.
“We invite you to jump down the rabbit-hole of human emotion, and celebrate with us as conflict becomes harmony and love finally conquers all.’
Eric Melear, Artistic Director of National Opera Studio said: ‘The National Opera Studio’s partnership with Scottish Opera is one of our most valued relationships. Working with their team provides our Young Artists with an immersive, professional experience that’s essential to their development.
“The unique mentorship and practical skills they gain here are invaluable to their careers. We share a commitment to nurturing emerging talent, and our artists consistently find Scottish audiences to be wonderfully welcoming and supportive.’
The National Opera Studio offers intensive and bespoke professional training for the next generation of opera stars. Alumni include Gerald Finley, Alfie Boe, Lesley Garrett, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and Nicky Spence, who was the Patron of Scottish Opera Young Company.
Scottish Opera audiences will be familiar with NOS alumni including current Emerging Artist soprano Kira Kaplan, and tenor Robert Forrest. They are both cast members in the Opera Highlights tour this year. Kira has already appeared in the Company’s production of Albert Herring, and will perform in Trial by Jury and A Matter of Misconduct! in May.
Scottish Opera brings its pioneering health and arts initiative, Breath Cycle, to the stage with two special evenings of live performance at The Beacon, Greenock (31 January), and Glasgow’s Tron Theatre (1 February).
These intimate performances showcase the transformative powers of daily practice in breath control and vocal training for individuals suffering from a range of lung conditions, as well as supporting them to share their lived experience of coping with often life limiting lung conditions, through a series of song writing workshops.
The intention is to support people in their journey to reclaim their physical and mental resilience.
Award-winning composer Gareth Williams and writer Martin O’Connor lead an exceptional ensemble featuring Admiral Fallow’s Louis Abbott, operatic tenor David Douglas (pictured above), and actor-songwriter Frances Thorburn, accompanied by violin, cello, and piano who will perform their renditions of a selection of the songs that have been created during the workshops over the past three years.
Breath Cycle was originally developedin 2013 by Scottish Opera and Glasgow’s Gartnavel General Hospital West of Scotland Adult Cystic Fibrosis Unit, to explore whether building lung capacity and developing breath control as part of a daily vocal routine could prove beneficial to the physical and mental health and wellbeing of patients.
Scottish Opera repurposed the project during lockdown to offer support to people struggling with the debilitating effects of Long COVID. Since Autumn 2021, nearly 500 people from Scotland and across the world have taken part in the Breath Cycle sessions mentored by Scottish Opera artists, and over 3000 individuals have accessed the online resources freely available from the Company’s website to use at home at their own convenience.
Last year, Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland (CHSS) and Scottish Opera joined forces to develop online singing classes for people living with aphasia. These built on the Breath Cycle project, to unlock the therapeutic benefits of singing and song writing to people living with aphasia, which is caused by damage to the part of the brain that controls language, and in some cases leaves some unable to speak at all.
Jane DavidsonMBE, Director of Outreach and Education at Scottish Opera said: ‘As we expand the Breath Cycle II programme in 2025, we’re excited to bring these remarkable stories to the stage for the first time.
‘Our ensemble will bring to life the experiences of Breath Cycle participants through songs crafted by Gareth Williams and Martin O’Connor. These performances not only showcase personal journeys, but also raise awareness about respiratory health challenges facing many Scots. Audiences will even have the opportunity to experience some of our proven breathing exercises and vocal techniques firsthand.’
Breath Cycle: A Story of Healing is supported by The Scottish Government, Cruach Trust, The Murdoch Forrest Charitable Trust and Scottish Opera’s Education Angels.
On Monday (18 November), Scottish Opera is launching a new, trauma-aware, inclusive, accessible vocal education resource, created by Education Artist in Residence, Lea Shaw, entitled The Small Magician, which enables participants to healthily challenge and build their vocal technique and knowledge from the comfort of their own home or chosen space.
The launch coincides with National Self-Care week, which runs from 18-24 November and isan annual awareness week that focuses on embedding support for self-care across communities, families and generations, with this year’s theme being ‘Mind & Body’.
Lea is an award-winning Black/BIPOC mezzo-soprano from Colorado, who lives and works in Scotland. A Scottish Opera Emerging and Associate Artist since 2021, she has performed in many recent Company productions including Ainadamar, Il trittico and Opera Highlights.
With The Small Magician, Lea aims to empower participants to embrace their voices (both singing and speaking) and practice, as part of a wider sense of well-being and an awareness of mental and physical health.
The guidance draws on classic pedagogy, scientific research, and Yoga and embodiment practices, and Lea has created a series of short videos, audio guides and workbooks covering breath-work, texture, diction, intonation, pattern, embodiment, and recovery which can be accessed for no charge on Scottish Opera’s website.
Designed to be a safe place to explore and foster curiosity, The Small Magician puts emphasis on engaging with the voice as a form of play, with every voice being valid.
The written resources are presented in PDF form so that they are easily accessible and printable if desired, whilst contents come in a digestible quantity of exercises, with the time needed to work through a session being flexible.
Lea also designed the resources using trauma aware and responsive principles, understanding that anyone coming to the project, either as a facilitator or as a participant, will have their own complex history. That history does not have to be shared with anyone to be valid, and the impacts they feel do not need to be justified.
Knowing this, the language of the project is open, encouraging, and positive, and there is a large emphasis placed on participants’ personal sovereignty, autonomy, and intuitive practice.
By being aware of all of this, The Small Magician can respond to the needs of participants by providing tools that can be of use, and by having a clear practice of open, non-judgemental communication, creating resources in direct response to these needs as they are shared.
Lea is currently working on more resources that are still in the research and development stage and will be added to The Small Magician in the near future, including workbooks for changing voices (transitioning voices, and for menopausal and menstruating people), lesson plans for teachers, warm-up books for choirs and in-person workshops.
Lea Shawsaid: ‘I gave The Small Magician this title as it originated with the idea that working with the voice and its relationship with the brain and body is indeed, magical!
‘It has always been important to me to feel part of something bigger, and to make others feel welcome in whatever space I’m in, in whatever way I can. Working with my voice has given me so much: a passion to share with others, a home within myself, and a community that gives me confidence and context. I know how crucial it is to have a positive working relationship with your voice, both artistically and in life as a whole.
‘The Small Magician is my way of opening my practice outward, and creating a support net and toolbox for anyone who wants to explore their voice: those who are be right at the beginning of their vocal learning, those who want to engage with their voice in a holistic way, or those who may not know where to start.
‘While many desire to engage with voice-work, they may not always feel that it is accessible to them. This can be due to the cost of accessing lessons or resources, a fear of an unfamiliar person critiquing a very vulnerable part of themselves, other accessibility needs that are not considered, or because of the events that led them to feeling voiceless from the outset: harsh words from authority figures or friends, their right to personal autonomy and consent being denied.
‘Their wishes and needs being disregarded or ridiculed, or anything else. Because our voices are so linked to our internal landscape and our mental wellbeing, it is important to me that this project is as safe a space as possible in approach and method.
‘My wish is that you feel empowered to use your voice as an extension of your authentic self, and to revel in the small magic that makes you, and your voice, unique.’
Jane DavidsonMBE, Director of Outreach and Education at Scottish Opera said: ‘Lea’s beautiful and empathetic programme aligns perfectly with a key objective that underpins much of the past 50 years of our work with schools and communities; namely, to encourage people of all ages to learn about the unique relationship between their voice and their sense of ‘self’.
‘We use the phrase ‘to have a voice’ in everyday conversation, but what does that really mean? Our voices are one of the most precious ways in which we can express ourselves – through the spoken word and through song, as individuals and as a group. Regular singing can ground us and help us to feel more at ease with ourselves, and others. Learning to use The Small Magician’s simple vocal, physical and mindfulness techniques is a wonderful way to help us negotiate the sometimes complex world we live in.’
More information about The Small Magician is available from 18 November at:
November 2024 marks 100 years since the death of Giacomo Puccini, one of opera’s most popular composers. Scottish Opera is offering audiences at Usher Hall in Edinburgh and Glasgow Royal Concert Hall a magnificent journey through beloved arias and ensembles from Puccini’s operas.
The Company’s Music Director Stuart Stratford presents this carefully curated selection of highlights, which includes some of Puccini’s most famous works, such as La bohème, Manon Lescaut and Tosca.
Audiences can also enjoy a taster of his earlier compositions including Le villi and Edgar, as well as glorious excerpts from underappreciated masterpieces such as La fanciulla del West, and his final, unfinished opera Turandot.
This gala performance promises to be an unforgettable evening celebrating a century of passion, drama, and exquisite music that has captivated audiences worldwide, including here in Scotland.
This concert is an ideal opportunity for anyone not familiar with Puccini — whose music is frequently incorporated into popular culture, including films and musicals — as well as seasoned operagoers.
Stuart Stratford conducts an exceptional cast of international talent including soprano Sinéad Campbell Wallace (known for her stunning portrayal of diva Floria Tosca in Tosca 2019), tenor Mykhailo Malafii (performing the role of Cavaradossi in Lviv National Opera’s Tosca this October) making his Company debut and baritone Roland Wood, who in 2023 brought depth and nuance to the complex characters of Michele and Gianni Schicchi in theCompany’s award- winning production of Il trittico. They are accompanied on stage by The Orchestra of Scottish Opera.
Soprano KiraKaplan, one of Scottish Opera’s Emerging Artists for the 2024/25 Season, who was in the Company’s recent production of Albert Herring, also joins the cast, along with tenor Fraser Simpson (La traviata 2024).
‘This concert is big, passionate sections from one of opera’s greatest composers, sung by a first-rate cast, including Sinéad Campbell Wallace and Roland Wood,” said Stuart Stratford who curated The Puccini Collection with Scottish Opera’s Head of Music, Fiona MacSherry.
“Puccini’s music has stood the test of time, and this concert is a tremendous opportunity to see these brilliant singers onstage with a full orchestra, and mark the centenary of this iconic composer’s death, which is on 29 November this year,
‘You’ll hear huge excerpts from Tosca and La bohème, and sections from Manon Lescaut and La fanciulla del West, among other arias and interludes. Whether you are looking to relive your Italia 90 moment, or discover even more about the great Italian master, it promises to be an evening of unforgettable treasures.’
A Rich History of Puccini in Scotland
The work of Puccini has a special place in the history of Scottish Opera: the Company’s very first production was Madama Butterfly in 1962. More recently, the Company’s staging of Il trittico received an International Opera Award Nomination, and won Outstanding Achievement in Opera at the Critics’ Circle Awards 2023.
Other notable Scottish Opera productions of Puccini’s work include a contemporary Labohème outdoors in the car park of its Edington Street Production Studios in Glasgow during the pandemic, a new Madama Butterfly by Sir David McVicar in 2000, director Anthony Besch’s legendary staging of Tosca (first performed in 1980 and revived nine times since then), and it was in the Company’s 2010 concert staging of La fanciulla del West that acclaimed soprano Susan Bullock first performed the role of Minnie.
Puccini’s music also helped Scottish Opera mark its 60th Anniversary. In 2022, the Company commissioned a custom made gin from Biggar Gin, called Suonare, featuring a red label with die-cut holes which when removed and placed in a music box played ‘Un bel di’ from Madama Butterfly, a favourite of Scottish Opera’s founder, Sir Alexander Gibson.
This rich history with Puccini’s works demonstrates Scottish Opera has developed a deep understanding and appreciation for the composer’s music.
The Puccini Collection was originally performed in Dundee in December 2021, under pandemic conditions. The Dundee Courier praised the concert as ‘a perfect tribute to a man whose melodies are to die for.’
The Puccini Collection is supported by Friends of Scottish Opera and The Scottish Opera Endowment Trust.
Following the success of Daphne in 2023,the Opera in Concert series is rounded off for the 2024/25 Season, with The Strauss Collection in March, which features some of the finest pieces Richard Strauss ever wrote, with music from Ariadne auf Naxos, Arabella, and Der Rosenkavalier.
The first half moves between a clash of artistically opposed theatre troupes in Ariadne to a nostalgic Viennese romance complete with disguises and mistaken identities in Arabella. The second half captures the highlights of Der Rosenkavalier’s three acts, following two colliding love stories with all the complications and grandeur of human relationships.
Stuart Stratford conducts The Orchestra of Scottish Opera through these lush sound worlds. The all-star cast includes sopranos Helena Dix and Rhian Lois (La bohème 2020), mezzo-soprano Hanna Hipp (Kátya Kabanová 2019), and baritone Roland Wood (Oedipus Rex 2024), all making the most of Strauss’ astounding understanding of the human voice.
The Puccini Collection cast and creative team
Conductor Stuart Stratford
Soprano Sinéad Campbell Wallace
Tenor Mykhailo Malafii
Baritone Roland Wood
Soprano Kira Kaplan
Tenor Fraser Simpson
The Puccini Collection performance diary
Usher Hall, Edinburgh 22 November 2024,7.30pm
Glasgow Royal Concert Hall 23 November 2024, 7.30pm
OPENS ATTHEATRE ROYAL GLASGOW BEFORE TOURING TO INVERNESS, EDINBURGHAND ABERDEEN
This autumn, Scottish Opera presents a revival of the much-loved 2014 production of Donizetti’s Don Pasquale, which opens at Theatre Royal Glasgow on 12 October and tours to Inverness, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
It is performed alongside the Company’s specially created staging of Britten’s Albert Herring, which is at Lammermuir Festival, Theatre Royal Glasgow and Festival Theatre Edinburgh, bringing even more opera to Scottish audiences.
Conducted by Scottish Opera Music Director Stuart Stratford, Director-Designer duo Renaud Doucet and André Barbe (La bohème 2017) and Lighting Designer Guy Simard bring this quick-witted comedy to life with typically colourful and quirky style. Set in Rome at the cusp of the Swinging Sixties, the eccentric characters are given life in a world that is the perfect setting for a titanic clash of generations.
This highly successful production of Don Pasquale, which began life at Scottish Opera, was recently seen in Miami, Genoa, Vancouver, and Toronto.
David Stout, who delighted audiences in The Barber of Seville in Autumn 2023, returns to Scottish Opera as Don Pasquale, with three up-and-coming singers making their Scottish Opera debuts in the main roles.
Opera Australia principal soprano Stacey Alleaume is Norina, Filipe Manu (Jette Parker Young Artist 2019/20) is Pasquale’s son Ernesto, and Josef Jeongmeen Ahn (a member of the Jette Parker Artists Company of 2023/24) is Doctor Malatesta.
Don Pasquale runs a crumbling boarding house in Rome, and determined to keep his fortune to himself, he decides to marry, spiting his nephew Ernesto. But, when he finds a bride, he discovers that married life is not as simple as he expected …
Renaud Doucet and André Barbe said: ‘We are delighted to be returning to Scottish Opera with Don Pasquale. After studying the score, we thought that the creative vitality and energy of Rome in the mid 1960’s was an ideal setting for Donizetti’s generation clash opera.
‘We imagined that Don Pasquale owns a small, run-down pensione. Old and something of a hermit, he leaves the running of the hotel to his nephew Ernesto and to his staff – a rum bunch including a chain-smoking chambermaid, a greasy cook and a past-it porter, so old that he has shrunk inside his uniform. A chorus of tourists come and go.
‘The dramaturgy of the opera is illustrated during the overture by the video projection of a typically Italian 1960s ‘fotoromanzo’ — sequential storytelling using photographs, text and speech bubbles — starring the principal characters, enabling the audience to immediately jump into the action of this ‘dramma giocoso’ (drama with jokes).’
Stuart Stratfordsaid: ‘Donizetti was at the absolute height of his powers in terms of melodic gifts and spectacular writing for voices in Don Pasquale.
‘This production by Renaud DoucetandAndré Barbe is amazing, and it sits alongside Britten’s quintessential British comedy, Albert Herring.
‘Both are very different ways of approaching laughs in the theatre, and they were written just about 100 years apart.’
Those who wish to discover more about how Don Pasquale was created can attend Pre-show Talks which delve into the detail of the opera. Tickets are free but should be booked in advance.
Audience members with a visual impairment can enjoy the full opera experience at Audio-described performances, which have a live commentary describing the action on stage without compromising the music. There are also free Touch Tours of the set, and a live audio introduction before the start of the performance.
Specially created Access performances of Don Pasquale run alongside the mainstage productions in Glasgow and Edinburgh. With Dementia Friendly values at their core, afternoon Access performances are for those who enjoy a more relaxed opera experience.
With a shorter running time (under two hours including an interval) and tickets at just £12.50, these performances are open to all, including those who may be living with dementia or Long COVID, more comfortable at a shorter show, struggling to get to evening performances, or would simply benefit from the more relaxed atmosphere.
Don Pasquale is supported by The Scottish Opera Syndicate.
Building on Scottish Opera’s ground breaking Breath Cycle project, Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland is collaborating with the country’s largest performing arts organisation to improve the lives of those living with aphasia, a communication difficulty that is a common effect of strokes
A new research report launched earlier this month by CHSS revealed that poor mental health and loneliness are severely impacting people in Scotland living with aphasia
Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland (CHSS) and Scottish Opera have joined forces to develop online singing classes for people living with aphasia, which is caused by damage to the part of the brain that controls language, and in some cases leaves some unable to speak at all.
These new CHSS and Scottish Opera sessions coincide with Aphasia Awareness Month, which runs throughout June. This year’s theme is #AphasiaTogether, emphasising that those with the condition do not need to deal with this on their own.
This new strand of creative music making with CHSS — Scotland’s largest health charity working to help people with chest, heart and stroke conditions live life to the full — expands upon Scottish Opera’s pioneering Breath Cycle project, designed to support those with a range of conditions affecting lung health.
Following research and development sessions with medical educators, CHSS staff and people living with aphasia are working with Scottish Opera to provide supported communication and aphasia training, and help deliver the therapeutic singing, song-writing and breath control sessions.
The aim of these workshops is to improve the mental wellbeing and confidence in communication of those with aphasia and respiratory issues including COPD (Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), across the country.
Earlier this month, CHSS launched a report about the impact of aphasia on those living with the condition which revealed that:
More than half (52 per cent) of people with aphasia say their condition affects their mental health
Nearly half (48 per cent) with aphasia said they experienced loneliness as a result of their condition.
43 per cent of people with aphasia said it impacted on their ability to work as before
A third (34 per cent) of people with aphasia reported being treated negatively due to their condition.
CEO of Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland, Jane-Claire Judson, commented: “Working with Scottish Opera to unlock the therapeutic benefits of singing and song-writing to people living with aphasia is a fantastic opportunity to tackle real issues facing people across the country.
“We regularly hear from the people we support that living with a communication difficulty following stroke can lead to feelings of isolation and loneliness and have a negative impact on mental health.
“We look forward to bringing people together to experience the joy of singing with others whilst exploring the benefits of singing and song writing to their communication skills.”
Jane Davidson MBE, Director of Outreach & Education at Scottish Opera, said: “Following on from the increased awareness of our Breath Cycle II programme in 2020, which was designed for people living with Long COVID and other respiratory conditions, Scottish Opera is excited to partner with CHSS to support people with aphasia.
“The work that CHSS undertakes each year with hundreds of thousands of Scots has set really high standards in the positive integration of mental health and well-being initiatives with clinical intervention.
“As Scotland’s largest performing arts company, we feel that the values of both our organisations are beautifully aligned in this new collaboration that seeks to enhance the quality of people’s lives across the country.”
Composer Gareth Williams, who along with writer Martin O’Connor, mentored the most recent online song writing Breath Cycle sessions said: “Our encounters with the Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland team, and our first conversations with our participants who have aphasia have been so inspiring.
“Our challenge is to help people find and connect with their voices again, both their physical voices and their creative voices. There are incredible stories to tell in this community, and together we will find them and share them through song.”
In its 62nd year, Scottish Opera presents eight emotionally powered operas; two composer collections; an animated opera; and a packed programme of touring, outreach, and education work
World premieres of Karen MacIver’s RED by Scottish Opera Young Company, Toby Hession’s A Matter of Misconduct! and animated opera Josefine by Samuel Bordoli
New productions of Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex, Janáček’s The Makropulos Affair, Gilbert & Sullivan’s Trial by Jury and Lehár’s The Merry Widow
Britten’s Albert Herring specially created forLammermuir Festival
Revival of 2014 production of Donizetti’s Don Pasquale
Opera in Concert includes The Puccini and Strauss Collections
Scottish Opera has unveiled its 2024/25 Season, which features 13 opera offerings: Oedipus Rex, Albert Herring, Don Pasquale, The Makropulos Affair, The Merry Widow, Trial by Jury, A Matter of Misconduct!, RED, Josefine, The Puccini and Strauss Collections, Opera Highlights and Pop-up Opera.
This includes three world premieres, four new productions, two composer collections, a revival of a much-loved show, and a packed programme of concerts, touring, outreach, and education work.
This high-octane collection of operas, concerts and tours covers a wide range of composers, styles and stories, demonstrating the Company’s continuing commitment to keeping opera accessible, entertaining, and performed to the highest possible standards for audiences all across Scotland.
Alex Reedijk, Scottish Opera General Director, said: ‘Our commitment to presenting world-class opera across all of Scotland is once again evident in our 2024/25 Season, which we are delighted to announce today.
‘We have 13 exciting opera adventures ahead of us: Oedipus Rex, Albert Herring, Don Pasquale, The Makropulos Affair, The Merry Widow, Trial by Jury, A Matter of Misconduct!, RED, Josefine, The Puccini and Strauss Collections, Opera Highlights and Pop-up Opera. Audiences can experience the full spectrum of human responses and feelings that only opera can evoke, from belly laughs to tears, with this diverse collectionof works, themes and composers.
‘It is hugely heartening to see enthusiastic audience and critical response to our work; this loyal support makes our art possible. We are immensely grateful to everyone who buys a ticket or generously supports us, and we are as ever thankful to the Scottish Government for ongoing core funding. We invite everyone to be a part of Scottish Opera and look forward to welcoming audiences at an upcoming performance.’
Stuart Stratford, Scottish Opera Music Director, added: ‘This is Scottish Opera’s 62nd year, and in our 2024/25 Season we are presenting music from more than 11 composers in 56 venues the length and breadth of the country, showing our unabated dedication to bringing opera to everyone in Scotland.
“Featuring a wide variety of styles and genres, it truly exemplifies what the Company is all about.
‘There are some more familiar works alongside brand new music, including the relentless forward momentum of Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex, the bel canto masterpiece of Donizetti’s Don Pasquale, as well as world firsts from talented young composers like Toby Hession’s A Matter of Misconduct!. We are particularly delighted to launch Josefine, our very first opera told through animation, which follows on from our internationally acclaimed short film, The Narcissistic Fish.
‘Partnerships are a crucial part of making opera, and we are working with other internationally renowned opera companies to maximise resources and create fantastic shows. This Season sees co-productions with our friends at Welsh National Opera, Opera Holland Park, and D’Oyly Carte Opera.
‘We are also incredibly proud of the work we have just done in the 2023/24 Season, which included receiving an International Opera Award nomination for Puccini’s Il trittico. Our reach around the world is evident with a number of our productions being performed far and wide including Ainadamar this autumn at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, and in spring 2025, Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves, which also began life in Scotland, opens at Houston Grand Opera.’
A balance of international and home grown talent appears throughout the season.
Making their debuts with the Company are Josef Jeongmeen Ahn, Stacey Alleaume, Seumas Begg, Chloe Harris, Edward Jowle, Kira Kaplan, Jonathan Forbes Kennedy, Michael Lafferty, Mykhailo Malafii, Filipe Manu and Callum Thorpe.
There are welcome return visits from Orla Boylan, Mark Le Brocq, Susan Bullock, Brad Cooper, Ross Cumming, Glen Cunningham, Helena Dix, Zoe Drummond, Alasdair Elliott, Catriona Hewitson, Hanna Hipp, Emyr Wyn Jones, Rhian Lois, Jamie MacDougall, Shengzhi Ren, David Stout, Richard Suart, Henry Waddington, Sinéad Campbell Wallace, Kitty Whately, and Roland Wood.
Season 2024/25 Productions
This August 12, 18 and 19, at Edinburgh International Festival (EIF), Scottish Opera presents a promenade performance of Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex at the National Museum of Scotland.
Building on the Company’s well-honed model of 5-star community opera, the Museum’s awe-inspiring Grand Gallery is a spectacular setting for a night of classical drama, exceptional vocal performances and moving orchestral music.
In this co-presentation with EIF, Scottish Opera Music Director Stuart Stratford conducts former Emerging Artist Shengzhi Ren (Daphne 2023)as Oedipus, Kitty Whately (Don Giovanni 2022) as Jocasta, Roland Wood (Marx in London! 2024) as Creon, Callum Thorpe as Tiresias, Seumas Begg as Shepherd and Emyr Wyn Jones (Don Giovanni 2022) as Messenger.
The director is Roxana Haines (Hansel & Gretel 2023)and designs are by Anna Orton (The Tsar Has His Photograph Taken 2021). An impressive community chorus from across the Central Belt of Scotland joins Scottish Opera for this unique performance of a timeless piece made anew for audiences.
In the ancient city of Thebes, Oedipus has been crowned king, but as the Oracle prophesises misfortune, it becomes ever more apparent that the new king cannot outrun his fate. A cathartic exploration of identity, free will, and the human condition, Oedipus Rex celebrates the bravery and resolve with which humans can face their destinies.
Oedipus Rex is supported by The Scottish Opera Endowment Trust.
Award-winning Daisy Evans (The Telephone 2020) is directing a specially created production of Britten’s chamber opera, Albert Herring, for Lammermuir Festival. As well as at Haddington’s Corn Exchange in September, it will be performed at Theatre Royal Glasgow and Festival Theatre Edinburgh this October and November.
Britten’s loose adaptation of a Guy de Maupassant short story has become one of the 20th century’s most beloved operatic comedies, and in this production William Cole conducts a cast of top UK singers alongside up-and-coming talent. This includes former Scottish Opera Emerging Artist Glen Cunningham (A Midsummer Night’s Dream 2021) as Albert Herring, Susan Bullock (Candide 2022) as Lady Billows and Jamie MacDougall (Marx in London! 2024) as the Mayor, Mr. Upfold.
The market town of Loxford is just as busy with gossip as it is with trade. As Lady Billows organises the annual May Day festival, she is alarmed when her housekeeper Florence Pike informs her that not a single young lady is suitably virtuous to be crowned May Queen. The answer is to crown Albert Herring, a shy mother’s boy, as the May King. Albert has not done anything wrong – indeed, he has hardly done anything at all! Suddenly in the spotlight, Albert finds himself at the crossroads between the time-honoured traditions upheld by Loxford’s old guard and the freewheeling fun of his fellow youngsters, both of whom are quick to judge the odd one out.
Designer Kat Heath brings a colourful eye to this heart-warming coming-of-age story that celebrates finding one’s own path in life despite – or perhaps because of – the misadventures along the way.
Albert Herring is supported by The Scottish Opera Endowment Trust.
Conducted by Stuart Stratford, a revival of the 2014 production of Donizetti’s Don Pasquale opens at Theatre Royal Glasgow in October, and tours to Inverness, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.
Director and Choreographer Renaud Doucet and designer André Barbe (La bohème 2017) bring the quick-witted comedy to life with typically colourful and quirky style. Set in Rome at the cusp of the Swinging Sixties, the eccentric characters are given life in a world that is the perfect setting for a titanic clash of generations. This highly successful production of Don Pasquale, which began life at Scottish Opera, was recently seen in Miami, Genova, Vancouver, and Toronto.
David Stout, who delighted audiences in The Barber of Seville in autumn 2023, returns to Scottish Opera in the title role, with three up-and-coming singers making their Scottish Opera debuts in the main roles. Stacey Alleaume is Norina, Filipe Manu is Pasquale’s son Ernesto and Josef Jeongmeen Ahn is Doctor Malatesta.
Don Pasquale is supported by The Scottish Opera Syndicate.
In February, for the first time since 1993, Scottish Opera is presenting a full staging of The Makropulos Affair by Janáček, in a new co-production with Welsh National Opera.
The Makropulos Affair tells the story of Emilia Marty, Elina Makropulos, E.M.; the stylish, enigmatic diva who has lived many lives, and for over three centuries has been on a quest to become a great opera singer. Captivating minds and hearts along her journey through time and across Europe, her existence throws up questions of science and nature, reality and fantasy, and life and death. When the elixir she was given begins to lose its power, and when secrets of her lives and loves come to light, she can no longer outrun these essential human tensions.
Martyn Brabbins conducts The Orchestra of Scottish Opera, with Orla Boylan (Marx in London! 2024) leading the cast as Emilia Marty, Brad Cooper (Daphne 2023) as Albert Gregor, Henry Waddington (Greek 2018) as Doctor Kolenatý and Mark Le Brocq (Nixon in China 2020) as Vitek.
Opening at Theatre Royal Glasgow before touring to Festival Theatre Edinburgh, this production directed by Olivia Fuchs with multi-layered, poetic designs by Nicola Turner, was nominated for a Southbank Sky Arts Award when presented by Welsh National Opera in 2022. An English translation makes this psychologically astute story even more immediate.
The Makropulos Affair is supported by The Alexander Gibson Circle.
Opening in April in Glasgow before touring to Inverness, Edinburgh and Aberdeen is a new co-production with D’Oyly Carte Opera and Opera Holland Park of The Merry Widow.
Lehár’s charming operetta is directed by John Savournin (who last appeared with Scottish Opera in Ainadamar in2022), conducted by Stuart Stratford,with celebrated stage designer takis bringing his signature visual dynamism to the romance. A new English translation by John Savournin and David Eaton makes this operetta’s wit sparkle. Details of the cast will be announced later this year.
The Merry Widow is set at a lavish Parisian party, a grand occasion for dancing, drinking, and indiscreet love affairs. Baron Zeta – ambassador from the cash-strapped fictional Balkan state of Pontevedro – has a slightly more serious matter in mind. Among his party is Hanna Glawari, a sprightly Pontevedran widow who has arrived in town to enjoy life and her late husband’s immense fortune. Zeta cannot bear the thought of Pontevedro losing half its national wealth should Hanna marry a Parisian, so he sets his First Secretary Count Danilo to keep tabs on her heart. Little does he know that they have quite the history…
The Merry Widow is supported by Scottish Opera’s ‘Play A Supporting Role’ Appeal.
In May and June 2025, to celebrate 150 years of D’Oyly Carte Opera and Gilbert & Sullivan, a sprightly double bill of justice and its miscarriages comes to life alongside The Merry Widow: a new production of Trial by Jury, and the world premiere of A Matter of Misconduct!, a new operetta by Toby Hession with a libretto by Emma Jenkins.
Trial by Jury is directed by John Savournin, and Laura Attridge directs A Matter of Misconduct!. Conducting The Orchestra of Scottish Opera for both productions is Toby Hession, and designs are by takis.
With a comic cast including Richard Suart and Jamie MacDougall and Scottish Opera’s Emerging Artists Ross Cumming, Kira Kaplan, Chloe Harris and Edward Jowle performing contrasting roles in both pieces, it promises an unmissable night of classic G&S comedy and new writing – two pillars of Scottish Opera’s output.
The first major hit from the partnership of WS Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan satirises the mechanisms of justice through a classic case of broken vows – the defendant having literally left the plaintiff at the altar. The jury’s sympathies are divided in a case that bubbles over with emotion, humour, and downright chaos: how will they decide between the charming, yet rakish, defendant and the utterly captivating plaintiff?
Accompanying it is A Matter of Misconduct!, set in the press room at Number 9 Downing Street. When a scandal threatens to break about the frontrunner in a bloody leadership campaign, a lawyer is needed to prevent information from reaching the press. Enter Sylvia Lawless from the firm Lawless, Lawless, Lawless and Crook who must find the loopholes. This modern take on scurrilous behaviour follows Jenkins and Hession’s crowd-pleasing political satire In Flagrante, premiered on the 2023/24 Opera Highlights tour.
This new double bill is a co-production with D’Oyly Carte Opera and Opera Holland Park. A Matter of Misconduct! is a new co-commission by Scottish Opera, D’Oyly Carte Opera, and Opera Holland Park.
Supported by Scottish Opera’s New Commissions Circle.
Opera in Concert
Music Director Stuart Stratford curates Scottish Opera’s annual concert programme, introducing audiences to rare and underexplored work. Scottish Opera continues a crowd-pleasing ‘collection’ series in 2024/25 with explorations of two beloved opera composers: Giacomo Puccini and Richard Strauss.
To mark the centenary of the composer’s death, The Puccini Collection takes placein November this year at Usher Hall, Edinburgh and Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, featuring favourite arias, ensembles and orchestral interludes from Puccini’s timeless operas. Soloists Sinéad Campbell Wallace, (The Puccini Collection 2021), Mykhailo Malafii, and Roland Wood (Marx in London! 2024), are accompanied on stage by The Orchestra of Scottish Opera under the baton of Stuart Stratford.
Featuring excerpts from well-known and well-loved works including Tosca, Manon Lescaut, and La bohème, as well as rarer gems from Le villi and Edgar, there is plenty for newcomers and aficionados alike in The Puccini Collection.
In March 2025, The Strauss Collection comes to Glasgow Royal Concert Hall and Usher Hall, Edinburgh.
Following the success of Daphne in 2023, Scottish Opera is delighted to present a concert spanning some of the finest music Richard Strauss ever wrote. The German composer’s early 20th-century output shows the heights of his harmonic and dramatic daring, exemplified by the three operas in this concert – Ariadne auf Naxos, Arabella, and Der Rosenkavalier.
Stuart Stratford leads The Orchestra of Scottish Opera through the German composer’s most lush and captivating scenes and arias, with a cast including sopranos Helena Dix, Rhian Lois (La bohème 2020), mezzo-soprano Hanna Hipp (Kátya Kabanová 2019) and baritone Roland Wood (Marx in London! 2024).
The Puccini Collection and The Strauss Collection are supported by Friends of Scottish Opera and The Scottish Opera Endowment Trust.
Digital productions
After the success of 2020’s live-action opera short, The Narcissistic Fish, Scottish Opera is excited to present its first ever animated opera short Josefine, produced in partnership with Maestro Broadcasting.
This 14-minute film, inspired by Franz Kafka’s last short story ‘Josefine the Singer’, is directed by Scottish Opera’s resident filmmaker Antonia Bain and composed by former Emerging Artist Composer-in-Residence Samuel Bordoli, with a libretto co-authored by the pair. The Executive Producer is Gemma Dixon, and the Animation Director is Sophie Bird.
The recording features 2022/23 Emerging Artist Zoe Drummond, a chorus including Osian Wyn Bowen, Phil Gault, Jane Monari, Frances Morrison-Allen, Colin Murray, Sarah Power, Christian Schneeberger, Sarah Shorter and The Orchestra of Scottish Opera conducted by Susannah Wapshott, Scottish Opera’s Chorus Director.
By combining the mediums of opera and animation, Josefine promises a new and exciting way to experience and explore both art forms. Taking place in a desert world where a creature’s unearthly voice attracts sprites who are enthralled by it, the piece explores the complicated relationship between the singer and audience and the ever-more-relevant question of art’s place in times of crisis. With confirmed screenings at the Film Festival at Vienna’s Rathausplatz in summer 2024, as well as other dates to be announced, Josefine will soon be coming to a screen near you.
Josefine is supported by Scottish Opera’s New Commissions Circle.
Opera Highlights
Scottish Opera produces world-class work at every scale. The Company’s extensive touring programme is one of the largest of any European opera company, ensuring performances are within reach of as many of Scotland’s dispersed population as possible.
From 25 January to 22 March2025, Opera Highlights goes on the road again visiting 24 venues around Scotland, in a vibrant new production directed by Rebecca Meltzer.
A troupe of talented singers, including Scottish Opera’s Emerging Artists Ross Cumming, Chloe Harris and Kira Kaplin, perform in this one-of-a-kind show, programmed by Fiona MacSherry, Scottish Opera’s Head of Music. They are accompanied on the piano by Music Director Joseph Beesley.
They will travel to Cumbernauld, Kelso, Langholm, Clydebank, Tain, Fochabers, Midmar, Troon, Stranraer, Peebles, Mid Yell, Lerwick, Campbeltown, Craignish, Strontian, Dunoon, Castlebay, Tarbert, Ullapool, Durness, Thurso, Killin, Anstruther, and Dundee.
Scottish Opera is also running 11 schools workshops and four community sessions alongside Opera Highlights, in the following locations: Tain, Fochabers, Troon, Stranraer, Lerwick, Mid Yell, Campbeltown, Lochgilphead, Castlebay, Tarbert, Ullapool, Thurso, Anstruther, and Dundee.
Opera Highlights is supported by Friends of Scottish Opera.
Scottish Opera Young Company
From 18 to 21 July 2024, Scottish Opera Young Company is presenting the world premiere of RED, a darkly comedic piecedrawn from fairy tales by The Brothers Grimm, at the Company’s Production Studios in Glasgow.
An interwoven story of the four stages of women’s lives that often feature in folk tales, RED is by award-winning composer Karen MacIver, with a libretto by Scottish Opera’s Director of Outreach and Education, Jane Davidson MBE. The conductor is Young Company’s Artistic Director Chris Gray, with Flora Emily Thomson (Maud & Down in the Valley 2023 and As The Seasons Turn 2022) returning to direct the 14 young performers aged between 17 to 21. Set and costume designs are by Finlay McLay.
RED is inspired by Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, Snow White and Hansel & Gretel, and features aspects of the ages of unnamed female figures — girl, maiden, mother, crone — that often appear in these famous stories. The 70-minute opera examinesthe circular, metamorphic nature of these tales as well as experiences shared by generations of women across time through magical realism.
Scottish Opera Young Company offers young singers a unique and practical introduction to the world of opera and the chance to develop their talent through a year-long programme, working with a range of opera professionals.
RED is supported by The Rose Fund and Scottish Opera Education Angels.
Pop-up Opera
The current Pop-up Opera tour is already underway and on the road until 6 July, with performances of A Little Bit of The Merry Widow and A Little Bit of Don Giovanni – one the ultimate rom-com, the other a moody story of one man’s fate – entertaining audiences from Dumfries to Orkney.
The 2024 Pop-up tour also includes the Scottish Opera new commission Sophie & Bear, a piece for Primary 1-4 that explores mental health awareness and self-care. The specially created piece is composed by Graham McCusker, and devised and written by Pop-up regulars Andrew McTaggart and Jessica Leary.
In these shows, audiences can experience opera on a miniature scale with performances brought to life by a storyteller, singers, instrumentalists and colourful illustrations.
Schoolchildren can also look forward to the tour popping up in primary schools for free performances.
Details of the 2024/25 Pop-up Opera tour will be announced early next year.
Pop-up Opera is supported by Friends of Scottish Opera.
Emerging Artists
The Scottish Opera Emerging Artistsprogramme offers young talent a period of full-time work with the Company to help launch their careers. This season they include soprano Kira Kaplan, mezzo-soprano Chloe Harris, baritone Ross Cumming (returning for a second Season), bass-baritone Edward Jowle, and repetiteur José Javier Ucendo Malo (also returning). The Elizabeth Salvesen Costume Trainee will be announced soon.
Emerging Artist singers perform in a number of this season’s productions and tours, and in recitals at the University of Glasgow and University of St Andrews this November.
They are supported by Scottish Opera’s Emerging Artist Benefactors and Elizabeth Salvesen.
National Opera Studio
As one of the National Opera Studio’s partners, Scottish Opera is delighted to host the 2024/25 NOS cohort – a group comprising some of the brightest rising star singers and repetiteurs from around the world – for a one-week residency of coaching with the Company’s Music department and a guest director. The result is a brand-new showcase performance of operatic scenes and extracts on the set of The Makropulos Affair at Theatre Royal Glasgow on 21 February.
The Orchestra of Scottish Opera
The Orchestra of Scottish Opera regularly performs with other professional musical ensembles across the west of Scotland, supporting their work and the country’s wider ecology of live music and performing arts.
In the 2024/25 Season, The Orchestra performs with companies including Paisley Opera’s production of Gounod’s Faust, Pops at the Phil – The Golden Age of Radio and Early Television, Dundee Choral Union, City of Glasgow Chorus – A Christmas Cracker and Ayr Arts Guild, with more engagements to be announced.
Special Delivery
From 30 November to 29 December at Cumbernauld Theatre at Lanternhouse, is Special Delivery, presented by Cumbernauld Theatre Company, Visible Fictions, and Scottish Opera.
An enchanting musical journey filled with wonder, created for little ones aged 3-7, this delightful show follows Santa on his busiest night of the year, Christmas Eve. Travelling around the world and squeezing down chimneys to deliver presents is a tough job, but this time it is made even more difficult when he is joined by a tiny mischievous hitchhiker who is looking for a way back home. Composed by Karen MacIver with words by Clive King, the director is Dougie Irvine.
Opera in schools
Scottish Opera’s children’s operas make learning fun and creative. Over the years, the Primary Schools Tour has inspired over 850,000 children across all 32 Local Authority areas.
This year’s show is The Tale O’ Tam, a beloved Scottish Opera original making its return with a new digital version. The Tale O’ Tam, composed by Karen MacIver with words by Ross Stenhouse,can be facilitated with an in-person workshop day led by Scottish Opera Teaching Artists with full rental of props and costumes, or entirely within the classroom by teachers themselves, all supported by materials provided by the Company.
Scottish Opera also offers teaching resources for Secondary School pupils. Having worked alongside Largs Academy to develop the materials suitable for young people, The Elixir of Love: Three Ways to Stage an Operais a free teaching resource for teachers. Pupils learn about music, drama, and art and design – incorporating elements of history, storytelling, and critical thinking – as they explore Donizetti’s comedy through three interpretations.
Taking place from 28 October to 22 November 2024, The Giant’s Harp is an interactive educational singing workshop and performance pairing for pupils in Primary 3-4, which has been created by mezzo-soprano Lea Shaw and harpist Sharron Griffiths,to introduce children to the beautiful music and versatility of the harp. Using the legend ofJack and the Beanstalk and its magical singing harp, youngsters learn about the long history of this instrument and the many continents and cultures where it can be found.
Disney Musicals in Schools collaborates with primary schools with no previous engagement with the arts and often facing a range of social and economic challenges. Teaching Artists guide pupils through rehearsals for special adaptations of Disney musicals and, crucially, provide training for teachers to build their pupils’ skills and confidence through the performance arts, creating a sustainable arts legacy for the future. Scottish Opera is Disney Musical in Schools’ first Scottish partner, and in this fourth successful year of the programme the Company engages with Additional Support Needs Schools for the first time.
New for 2024, Scottish Opera partners with St. Mary’s Edinburgh and Douglas Academy Glasgow to support, mentor, and increase the numbers of young singers who want to explore opera as a career. A notable focus for 2024/25 and future seasons, based on recently identified gaps in music education and career progression, is on those with Additional Support Needs and those already attending one of Scotland’s Specialist Music Schools.
The Opera in Schools programmes are supported by Harbinson Charitable Trust, David & June Gordon Memorial Trust, Hayward Sanderson Trust, Scottish Opera’s Education Angels and JTH Charitable Trust.
Memory Spinners
Scottish Opera continues to offer its Memory Spinners project for those living with dementia. The free project uses music, storytelling, movement, and visual arts to help Glasgow-based people living with dementia get creative, and form new support networks. Throughout each 8-week term, they share memories that are then incorporated into a relaxed performance for friends and family.
Supported by The R S Macdonald Charitable Trust, Sylvia Aitken Charitable Trust, Bellahouston Bequest Fund, Trades House of Glasgow (Commonwealth Fund), and Scottish Opera’s Education Angels.
Royal Conservatoire of Scotland collaboration
Starting in 2025, the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland introduces a one-year Artist Diploma in Opera in collaboration with Scottish Opera to offer a highly specialised combination of vocal, movement and acting training. This new partnership will nurture the next generation of international opera talent, and culminates in students taking leading roles in Glasgow and Edinburgh as part of Scottish Opera’s core season.
Breath Cycle
The ground-breaking online programme, Breath Cycle, was formed with the Respiratory and Cystic Fibrosis Medicine team at NHS Glasgow. Designed to benefit those living with conditions affecting lung health – particularly Long COVID – free resources introduce participants to vocal exercises and breathing techniques. The response is overwhelmingly positive, with participants citing improvement in breathing, energy levels and mood. More information is available on the Scottish Opera website, where a series of short tutorials and exercises can be accessed, or those interested can sign up for weekly online sessions and song writing workshops.
The Covid Composer’s Songbook, aselection of songs written by Breath Cycleparticipants, has been recorded for anyone to use and enjoy. Visit Scottish Opera’s website to download the full collection.
Breath Cycle has grown from its original work with cystic fibrosis patients to include those recovering from Long COVID, then developing further to offer broader wellbeing support. This year, Scottish Opera partners with leading experts at University of the West of Scotland and Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland to develop Breath Cycle alongside evolving understandings of lung health and its associated health concerns.
Supported by The Scottish Government, Cruach Trust, The Murdoch Forrest Charitable Trust, W M Mann Foundation, Souter Charitable Trust and Scottish Opera’s Education Angels.
Community Choir
Places are available in Scottish Opera’s Community Choir, open to adults of all ages and conducted by Katy Lavinia Cooper, which starts up again in September. Set up in 2012, the Choir gives members an opportunity to sing a wide variety of music – folk, world, classical, opera, popular, and more – in a supportive atmosphere, with sharings each term and opportunities to perform in full operas, including Oedipus Rex at the Edinburgh International Festival. They do not need to be able to read music or have previous experience. The Community Choir most recently performed The Jolly Beggars at Cottiers Theatre in Glasgow.
Supported by Cruach Trust, The Murdoch Forrest Charitable Trust, W M Mann Foundation, Souter Charitable Trust, and Scottish Opera’s Education Angels.
Accessible Performances
Scottish Opera is offering a range of accessible performances, to ensure everyone has the opportunity to enjoy a live opera experience that is inclusive and welcoming. With Access Opera performances and audio-description available this year, the Company aims to make it as easy as possible to attend the opera.
Specially created Access performances of Don Pasquale and The Merry Widow run alongside the mainstage productions in Glasgow and Edinburgh. With Dementia Friendly values at their core, afternoon Access performances are for those who enjoy a more relaxed opera experience. With a shorter running time (under two hours including an interval) and tickets at just £12.50, these performances are open to all, including those who may be living with dementia or Long COVID, more comfortable at a shorter show, struggling to get to evening performances, or would simply benefit from the more relaxed atmosphere.
Those who are visually impaired can also take advantage of audio-described performances where a live commentary is provided by a specialist audio describer during the show, describing the action on stage without compromising the music. As part of the experience, a recorded introduction to the opera is available in advance, as well as a live audio introduction before the start of the performance.
At select performances, audiences can book on to a free Touch Tour to become more familiar with the set, scenery, props and costumes. Pre-show talks are also available. These half-hour sessions delve into the detail of each opera, enhancing the audience enjoyment and extending knowledge of the piece.
Healing Arts Scotland
The world’s first nationwide Healing Arts campaign unites organisations across culture, science, health, education, and government. A week of performances, exhibitions, and workshops begins at the Edinburgh International Festival on 19 August 2024. Scottish Opera performs at their event at Tramway, Glasgow on 21 August. Find out more at healingartsscotland.org
Festival of Politics
On 23 August 2024, the Scottish Parliament hosts its 20th Festival of Politics in partnership with Scotland’s Futures Forum and Healing Arts Scotland. Featuring sessions on political, social, and environmental issues, the festival offers people an opportunity to discuss current affairs. Scottish Opera is thrilled to present In Flagrante by Toby Hession and Emma Jenkins a short operatic political satire premiered on the 2023/24 Opera Highlights tour, in a performance at 3pm as part of the festival. Find out more at festivalofpolitics.scot
The Small Magician
The Small Magician is a trauma-aware, inclusive, accessible vocal education resource, which enables participants to healthily challenge and build their vocal technique and knowledge from the comfort of their own home or chosen space. Created by former Scottish Opera Emerging and Associate Artist Lea Shaw, the project aims to empower participants to embrace their voices and practice, as part of a wider sense of well-being and an awareness of mental/physical health. The guidance draws on classic pedagogy, scientific research, and Yoga and embodiment practices. Workbooks and resources covering breath-work, texture, diction, intonation, pattern, embodiment, and recovery can be accessed through
