William Berger as Papageno The Magic Flute

We are delighted that our production of The Magic Flute from the 2011 season will be staged at Ópera de Oviedo later this month (13-19 November). The production is being used in its entirety – although Papageno will not be able to cycle all the way around the auditorium between entrances in Act 1 as he did at Wormsley. Director Olivia Fuchs and several of the production team are currently in rehearsal in the beautiful capital of Asturias, Northern Spain.

Anthony Whitworth-Jones hopes to nurture more associations in the future: “This is the first collaboration with another opera company since our move to Wormsley, and we hope that, with the less site-specific nature of the stage area in our wonderful new opera pavilion, there will be many more opportunities for opera lovers abroad to see Garsington Opera’s productions”.

Garsington Opera Education has had a particularly busy year running up to the 2011 season. We have worked with 600 young people and 150 adults in the vicinity of Wormsley, bringing opera to them in a direct, involving and inspiring way. This short film features some of our recent projects.

In the summer holidays the team led song writing workshops for small groups of disadvantaged children taking part in the Turville Schools Trust holiday scheme. Fiona Hamiton of the Trust said “It was truly marvellous to see the children initially resistant even to the idea of a ‘music workshop’, let alone the concept of opera, gradually become engaged and enthralled."

This term projects include devising an opera based on Vivaldi’s L’Olimpiade at Icknield Community College, Watlington. The students are not only writing the libretto and musical themes, but also creating a set, costumes and props for the performances. It will be performed to local primary school pupils by the students and two Garsington Opera singers, in December. See the website for more information about all our education projects, and how to support this lesser-known part of our work.

On a sunny September day, staff from Wormsley Estate and Garsington Opera came together for a friendly match on the Getty’s famous cricket pitch. Gamekeepers, site managers, groundsmen, singers, estate workers, and musicians were cheered on by their colleagues. To our surprise and delight, Garsington Opera emerged victorious.

The Opera team was captained by Ben Bevan (Speaker in The Magic Flute), and the Wormsley team by the legendary Tim Munton, former Warwickshire, Derbyshire and England Fast Bowler, who also organises private and corporate cricket days at Wormsley. The evening ended with a spectacular sunset and barbecue. Many thanks to our Wormsley friends for making us so welcome.

Friends should now have received their advance booking forms. Affiliate Members will be notified of ticket availability by 27 February, and public booking opens on 16 April.

If you or your friends are not yet Affiliate Members of Garsington Opera please do get in touch. Affiliate Membership is open to all, and gives you the chance to book tickets ahead of the general public. Donations of £20 per year are suggested. Affiliate Members are invited to become Friends once they reach the top of the waiting list.

The Garsington Opera Experience

So many people were involved in the planning and building of our stunning new Opera Pavilion. We would like to take this opportunity to thank again everyone who helped us to raise £3.5m, in under a year, to make it possible. These two videos tell some of the story.

Constructing the Garsington Opera Pavilion

The Garsington Opera experience

Casts and details of the operas for next summer's season are now on our website. We are looking forward to welcoming back many well-known faces as well as new performers.

La Périchole - Offenbach

L'Olimpiade - Vivaldi

Don Giovanni - Mozart

For opera lovers and fans of Garsington Opera, our book Garsington Opera - A Celebration will delight. The history of the opera company is told by Richard Osborne with a huge array of pictures chronicling the years at Garsington Manor.

Click here for an order form or call the Box Office on 01865 361636 to order.
Price £30 + £5 pp.

The gates of hell will open this autumn

Join Welsh National Opera at New Theatre, Oxford this autumn for a major new period production of Don Giovanni. The forces of Lothar Koenigs and the Chorus and Orchestra of Welsh National Opera combine with one of the most celebrated partnerships in theatre: John Caird and John Napier to bring Mozart’s dark masterpiece to life. They have created a sculptured world of dark intensity as a backdrop for the profound human dramas which lie at the opera’s heart. The opera is as rich and complex as the Don himself – both chilling and beautiful, comic and dramatic.

Tuesday 22 and Friday 25 November | Tickets £15 - £49.50 | Book at newtheatreoxford.org.uk or 0844 871 3020