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Shakespeare Resounding:  Opera North’s Spring 2008 Main Stage Season (BK)

Opera North’s spring season features three new productions based on Shakespeare plays. Building on the success of Eight Little Greats, designer Johan Engels returns to design Macbeth,  A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Roméo et Juliette as a three-in-one-set. All three productions will have distinctly individual settings, whilst sharing the same foundation. Integrating sets and lighting designs in this way enables the Company to perform Saturday matinees and evening performances of different productions both in Leeds and on tour. Johan will be joined by the lighting designer Bruno Poet. Bruno’s previous work for Opera North includes La traviata (2003), Manon (2003), Don Giovanni (2005) and Hansel and Gretel (2005). Each production will have a different costume designer, detailed below.

Macbeth, Giuseppe Verdi. New production
Opening the Shakespeare Resounding season is Verdi’s Macbeth, directed by Tim Albery. It is Tim’s first Verdi opera for the Company since his intelligent and imaginative Don Carlos in 1993. Opera North’s music director, Richard Farnes, conducts.

The title role, widely regarded as one of the great early Verdi baritone roles, is sung by  Robert Hayward, who recently sang another celebrated Verdi role for the Company in last autumn’s Falstaff. Antonia Cifrone makes her Opera North debut as Lady Macbeth. Previously, she has sung almost all the Puccini roles and regularly appears with the Puccini Festival at Torre del Lago, both in the Summer Festival and abroad. Tenor Peter Auty, who made his professional début singing Remendado in Opera North’s production of Carmen (1998) and subsequently sang Alfredo in La traviata (2004), will sing the role of Macduff. Peter Wedd, who sang Boris in Katya Kabanova (2007) and Tamino in The Magic Flute (2007), sings the role of Malcolm. The Venezuelan bass Ernesto Morillo Hoyt makes his Company debut as Banquo. Joining Tim, Johan and Bruno on the production team is costume designer Brigitte Reiffenstuel. Brigitte collaborated with Charles Edwards in the Company’s recent production of Rigoletto. The Movement Director is Maxine Braham. The production is sung in Italian with English titles.

Cast and production team:
Lady Macbeth Antonia Cifrone (ex 18 & 21 June)
Yvonne Howard (18 & 21 June)
Macbeth Robert Hayward
Macduff Peter Auty
Banquo Ernesto Morillo Hoyt
Malcolm Peter Wedd
Conductor Richard Farnes (ex 21, 24, 28, 31 May, 21 June)
Martin Pickard (21, 24, 28, 31 May, 21 June)
Director Tim Albery
Set Designer Johan Engels
Costume Designer Brigitte Reiffenstuel
Lighting Designer Bruno Poet

Performances start at 7.15pm unless otherwise stated:
Leeds Grand Theatre - 23, 26 April, 2, 14, 21, 24 May
Theatre Royal, Nottingham - 28, 31 May
Theatre Royal, Newcastle - 4, 7 June
The Lowry, Salford Quays - 11, 14 June
New Victoria Theatre, Woking – 18, 21 June (both at 7.30pm)

Roméo et Juliette, Charles Gounod New production

Opera North’s commitment to developing young talent continues in the final production of the 2007/08 season. This is highlighted by the choice of John Fulljames as director of Roméo et Juliette. He has previously worked as an assistant director for the Company and in 2005 directed the semi-staged production of Hansel and Gretel. Since then he has had great success with Jonathan Dove’sThe Enchanted Pig at the Young Vic. Roméo et Juliette is his first main stage work for the Company. Two young stars-in-the making sing the title roles in this production: Italian / American tenor Leonardo Capalbo as Roméo and Slovenian soprano Bernarda Bobro as Juliette. Leonardo received rave reviews for his performances of Luigi in Il tabarro and Paco in La vida breve (2004, Eight Little Greats season) and subsequently returned to sing Juan in Arms and the Cow (2006). This is Bernarda’s debut with Opera North. Previously she has sung Fortuna in Il Sogno di Scipione at the Salzburg Festival and Norina in Don Pasquale at the Stadttheater Klagenfurt. Stephan Loges sings the role of Mercutio, having previously sung the Count in The Marriage of Figaro (2001) and Peter Wedd sings Tybalt. Mezzo-soprano Frances Bourne makes her Opera North debut as Stéphano, Geoffrey Dalton sings the role of Paris and Peter Savidge (also Theseus in A Midsummer Night’s Dream) takes the part of Benvolio. Yvonne Howard takes the role of Gertrude and Henry Waddington, (Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream) the role of Frére Laurent. Richard Burkhard takes the role of Gregorio and the Duke is sung by Simon Thorpe. The production is conducted by Martin André. Martin conducted Opera North’s production of Julietta and three of the award-winning 2004 Eight Little Greats (Il tabarro, Lavida breve and  Francesca da Rimini). Completing the production team is costume designer Adam Wiltshire, who previously designed Duke Bluebeard’s Castle (2005) for the Company. Choreography is by Ben Wright. The production is sung in French with English titles.

Cast and production team:
Roméo Leonardo Capalbo
Juliette Bernarda Bobro
Mercutio Stephan Loges
Tybalt Peter Wedd
Stéphano Frances Bourne
Paris Geoffrey Dolton
Capulet Peter Savidge
Benvolio Nicholas Sharratt
Gertrude Yvonne Howard (except 17, 20 June)
Gaynor Keeble (17, 20 June)
Frère Laurent Henry Waddington
Gregorio Richard Burkhard
The Duke Simon Thorpe
Conductor Martin André (ex 13 & 17 June)
Peter Selwyn (13 & 17 June)
Director John Fulljames
Set Designer Johan Engels
Costume Designer Adam Wiltshire
Lighting Designer Bruno Poet
Choreography Ben Wright

Performances start at 7.15pm unless otherwise stated:
Leeds Grand Theatre - 17, 20, 23 May
Theatre Royal, Nottingham - 30 May
Theatre Royal, Newcastle - 3, 6 June
The Lowry, Salford Quays - 10, 13 June
New Victoria Theatre, Woking – 17, 20 June (both 7.30pm)

More details and booking information are available on the Opera North web site.

Bill Kenny

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