A Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and Scottish Opera Co-production

Friday 25 January & Saturday 26 January, 7.15pm, Theatre Royal Glasgow

Tuesday 29 January, 7.15pm, Eden Court, Inverness, (Semi-staged performance)

Thursday 31 January & Friday 1 February, King’s Theatre, Edinburgh

The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and Scottish Opera team up once again, this time with a superbly visual production of Britten’s opera A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The production, which celebrates the 100th anniversary of Benjamin Britten’s birth, incorporates video design and physically demanding theatre into a performance perfectly pitched to showcasing the up and coming singers from the Conservatoire’s opera programme who will perform with players from The Orchestra of Scottish Opera.

Now in its 8th year, this ambitious collaboration is to be performed not only in Glasgow and Edinburgh but also, for the first time, in a semi-staged performance at Eden Court Theatre in Inverness. The production is a revival of the 2005 critically-acclaimed staging by Olivia Fuchs at the Royal Opera House Linbury Studio.

Scottish Opera’s Emerging Artists Rónan Busfield and Andrew McTaggart, both graduates of the Conservatoire’s Opera Masters programme, join the cast. The piece presents a perfect opportunity for students and young artists to flex their muscles in an opera known for the sheer diversity of theatrical parts, ranging from the dramatic to the comedic, and the considered singing roles written for younger voices. Joining them in the role of Puck is aerial artist Jami Quarrell, who performed in the original production and who trained at the École Internationale de Theatre Jacques Lecoq and at the École Internationale de Mimodrame de Paris Marcel Marceau.

Adapted from the Shakespeare play in collaboration with Peter Pears, Britten’s version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is centred on the ethereal word of the fairies rather than the human action at the heart of the original. His extraordinary music brings to life the magic of the Shakespeare’s characters – from the romantic lovers to meddlesome Puck and mighty Oberon, unusually written for countertenor, and even the sighing, creaking and rustling of the forest itself.

Professor John Wallace, CBE, Principal of the Royal Conservatoire, said: ‘Our partnership with Scottish Opera continues to go from strength to strength and our commitment to this collaboration has seen our ambitions grow. I am delighted that we are able to take this production to Inverness and I am sure that the audience there will be blown away by the calibre of performance we will stage. Our students, with the musicians and artisans of Scottish Opera by their side, receive an unrivalled experience.’

Alex Reedijk, General Director of Scottish Opera said: ‘This partnership is vital in so many ways – not only does it allow both the Royal Conservatoire and Scottish Opera to present interesting and unique productions each year, which we might not get to individually, it also ensures ever closer links between the training ground and the professional arena for the young artists, technicians and artisans of Scotland’s future.’

Source: Royal Conservatoire of Scotland