2 017 S E A SON G ROU P B OOK I NG I N FOR M AT ION
There is a new candidate for the accolade of Most Beautiful Opera House in the World. The Daily Telegraph
GA R SI NGTON OPE R A AT WOR M SL E Y Garsington Opera was established by opera-lover Leonard Ingrams 28 years ago. His vision has produced a company renowned for its operatic excellence, award-winning Opera Pavilion and quintessentially English experience. In 2011 the opera company moved from Garsington Manor to Wormsley, a traditional English estate in the beautiful Chiltern Hills and home of the Getty family. The experience of visiting Garsington Opera at Wormsley is, from start to finish, designed for pleasure. Guests are invited to arrive in the
afternoon to take tea overlooking the famous Wormsley Cricket Ground or visit the impressive 18th-century Walled Garden, a short bus ride from the site. Champagne is served and in the early evening audience members take their seats for the performance. The long dinner interval gives plenty of time to picnic in the gardens or dine in the Long Room Restaurant, Cricket Pavilion or Island Pavilion. As members depart at around 10.15pm, candles and the moon’s reflection in the lake light their way. An evening with Garsington Opera is truly an unforgettable experience.
T H E OPE R A Garsington Opera stages productions each year which combine well-known repertoire with the lesser-known. The season lasts for just 36 performances over eight weeks, 1 June – 30 July 2017. The company prides itself on the high quality of its productions and regularly receives praise in the national and international press, with its seasons regularly garnering five star reviews. As well as engaging experienced, world-class opera singers, Garsington Opera promotes young British talent by providing a platform for those just beginning to make their name on the world-wide opera stage, and a number of notable UK debuts
Right: Toby Spence as Idomeneo and Louise Alder as Ilia in Idomeneo, 2016 season.
have taken place. Our resident orchestra, the Garsington Opera Orchestra, is made up of exceptionally talented musicians, many of whom also have careers as soloists and their own chamber ensembles. From the very early days, Garsington Opera began to explore the neglected works of firstclass composers such as Haydn, Rossini, Richard Strauss and of Russian and Czech composers. The company is known for presenting British premieres, in addition to bringing well-loved works by composers such as Mozart to a new setting under the direction of Artistic Director Douglas Boyd.
Three world-class new productions each summer. The Wall Street Journal
Natalya Romaniw as Tatyana and Roderick Williams as Eugene Onegin in Eugene Onegin, 2016 season
2 017 SE A SON 1 J U N E – 3 0 J U LY Semele
Pelléas et Mélisande
Conductor Jonathan Cohen Director Annilese Miskimmon Designer Nicky Shaw Sung in English
Conductor Jac van Steen Director Michael Boyd Designer Tom Piper Sung in French (with surtitles)
Composed by Handel for London’s Covent Garden theatre, this treatment of a mythological subject gives wonderful opportunities for dramatic confrontations between gods and mortals, and for music of unique seductive power. Jupiter cajoles the all-too-human Semele into acquiescence by promising that ‘Where e’er you walk’ he will arrange for trees to gather round and provide welcome shade, and that at her every step, flowers will blossom into life. She exults, with unabashed sensual delight, in everything that Jupiter has to offer, singing triumphantly of ‘Endless pleasure, endless love’. Semele oversteps the mark by demanding immortality and suffers the consequences but fortunately she leaves a lifeenhancing legacy – her son, Bacchus, god of wine.
The only opera completed by Debussy, Pelléas et Mélisande conjures up a world unlike any other, a kingdom of shadows and secrets. Prince Golaud finds a mysterious young woman in the forest and delights in making her his wife. A dangerous love triangle emerges as she grows perilously close to his brother, Pelléas. As a child, as described by his sister Adèle, Debussy played for hours at a time with a cardboard theatre and would sometimes spend ‘entire days sitting in a chair dreaming’. This dreamworld eventually found expression in an opera of hypnotic allure.
George Frideric Handel
We welcome back Annilese Miskimmon, Artistic Director of Norwegian National Opera with Jonathan Cohen making his Garsington Opera conducting debut.
Claude Debussy
Michael Boyd and Tom Piper (Eugene Onegin, 2016) return with Jac van Steen (Intermezzo, 2015) conducting the Philharmonia Orchestra in their Garsington debut. 16, 18, 22, 25, 27 June & 1, 7, July
1, 3, 9, 15, 24, 30 June & 4 July
Le nozze di Figaro
Il turco in Italia
Conductor Douglas Boyd Director John Cox Designer Robert Perdziola Sung in Italian (with surtitles)
Conductor David Parry Director Martin Duncan Designer Francis O’Connor Sung in Italian (with surtitles)
It is the wedding day of Figaro and Susanna, servants of the Almaviva estate, but as events and the Count’s roving eye conspire to disrupt their marriage, all relationships are tested. All of this is brought to life by Da Ponte’s sparklingly adroit libretto and music by Mozart of consummate grace and yearning, wit and joyous invention.
Prosdocimo, a toiling poet, finds his muse in the flirtatious Fiorilla and her husband, Geronio. When a dashing Turkish stranger arrives, a comedy of unrequited love and confused identity ensues. Rossini’s deliciously layered plot sees games go wrong and lessons learned. Martin Duncan’s joyous 2011 production is conducted by Rossini aficionado David Parry.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
A recreation of John Cox’s critically acclaimed 2005 Garsington production, Mozart’s sublime masterpiece is conducted by Artistic Director, Douglas Boyd. 2, 4, 8, 10, 17 June & 3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 16 July
Gioachino Rossini
26, 29 June & 2, 5, 8, 10, 13, 15 July
T H E OPE R A PAV I LION The multi award-winning Opera Pavilion, designed by architect Robin Snell, is an elegant, lightweight, Japanese-inspired pavilion, elevated above the ground and seemingly ‘floating’ above the landscape. It achieves a feeling of intimacy, while commanding stunning, expansive views of the country estate over the lake and Deer Park. The pavilion features covered verandas and terraces where patrons can linger, enjoy the panorama and entertain guests. As at Garsington Manor, it is possible for audiences to enjoy the setting and the summer skies beyond the stage while remaining sheltered for the performance.
A glassy, light-filled pavilion theatre which achieves an intimacy rarely possible at any other performance of such world-class calibre. The Independent
THE AR EA
It is hard to imagine a more idyllic outdoor setting for an opera production than Wormsley. The New York Times
Wormsley is within easy reach of Oxford and only 50 minutes from central London, just off the M40 at junction 5 for Stokenchurch. There is an excellent fast train service from London Marylebone station to High Wycombe where we operate a pre-ordered minibus collection service. The estate is set in the Chiltern Hills, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, with many charming villages and magnificent beech woods in the rolling hills. Henleyon-Thames, home of the Royal Regatta, Hughenden Manor, Waddesdon Manor and Le Manoir Aux Quatr’Saisons are nearby.
DI N I NG Dinner is an integral part of the evening, taken during the opera’s 85-minute interval. Three-course menus with fine wines are served in the Long Room Restaurant overlooking John Paul Getty’s famous Cricket Ground; or guests may choose to picnic in one of our picnic tents with a gourmet hamper from our caterers. Private entertainment venues are available, offering a unique dining experience. These include the Cricket Pavilion, the Island Pavilion on the Wormsley lake and the Granary which looks out over the Opera Garden. Catering for the Cricket Pavilion and Island Pavilion is organised through our caterers who are available to provide afternoon tea, drinks, and a dinner menu with serving staff according to your preferences. The 2017 menu will be available in the New Year.
Cricket Pavilion The famous Wormsley Cricket Ground, based on The Oval, has been described as the most beautiful ground in England. Created by Sir Paul Getty, the names of those who have played on the pitch from the world of cricket and entertainment are legendary. Providing an idyllic location for a quintessentially English dining experience, the Cricket Pavilion seats up to 12 for dinner or a larger gathering for a buffet. Island Pavilion Positioned in the centre of the lake in Wormsley’s spectacular Deer Park, the Island Pavilion provides exceptional private entertaining opportunities. Built by Mark Getty in 2014 and designed by Robin Snell, architect of the Opera Pavilion, it is home to a variety of sculptures. The Island Pavilion seats up to 22 for dinner or can accommodate a larger gathering for a buffet.
Like a beautiful flower, you cannot enjoy it for long, and so you enjoy it intensely. The Daily Telegraph
WOR M SL E Y E STAT E The Wormsley Estate, home of the Getty family, is a 2500-acre estate and eighteenth-century country house nestling in the rolling, verdant countryside of the Chiltern Hills near Stokenchurch. Complete with lake and Deer Park, it is an English country estate on a grand scale and yet it is secluded and sheltered by the wooded slopes that enclose it. Champagne Bar Our recommended meeting place, the Champagne Bar is on the lower terrace of our award-winning Opera Pavilion and offers spectacular views over the Deer Park. Wide steps lead to mown pathways by the lake and picnic tents. Opera Garden A short walk from the Champagne Bar, across an elevated bridge, are the stunning flower borders of the Opera Garden. Specially designed for us when we moved to Wormsley, it evokes the fragrant surroundings of our original home at Garsington Manor. Cricket Ground A replica of The Oval, Wormsley’s Cricket Ground has been described as the most beautiful in England. Our Long Room Restaurant and tea lawn overlook the immaculate pitch and rolling Chiltern Hills beyond. Walled Garden Take a short journey in a complimentary vintage bus to the beautiful eighteenth-century Walled Garden and explore its four contrasting quarters with a glass of champagne.
Above: The Champagne Bar, the Wormsley cricket pitch, the Opera Garden, the Getty Library Opposite: The Walled Garden
The wooded hills rolling towards the horizon, the manicured lawns and delightful rose arbour, the swallows circling the lake, the famous cricket ground: all this ravishes the eye as you stand on the terraces surrounding the stunning opera pavilion. The Times
GROU P BOOK I NG S FOR 2 017 Performances at Garsington Opera become more popular each year, with tickets regularly selling out to members and sponsors before public booking opens in March. We are pleased to offer groups the opportunity to reserve tickets within the members’ priority booking period, with a group-booking donation of £20 per ticket. Each group booking is personally overseen and we endeavour to ensure that all clients receive the most detailed care and attention throughout the booking process and during their visit to Wormsley. Private tours can also be arranged upon request.
S E AT I NG PL A N
T IC K E T P R IC E S OPERAS Mon, Tues, Weds
Thurs, Fri, Sun
Sat
Boxes
£180
£200
£220
Rear Stalls
£125
£135
£155
Middle Stalls
£160
£170
£190
Front Stalls
£180
£200
£220
Orchestra Stalls
£155
£165
£185
All prices include a suggested, but non-obligatory, donation of £70.
For further information and to reserve tickets for Garsington Opera’s 2017 season, please contact: marketing@garsingtonopera.org +44 (0)1865 361636 www.garsingtonopera.org
Natalya Romaniw as Tatyana in Eugene Onegin, 2016 season.
G A R S I NG T O N O P E R A L I M I T E D The Old Garage The Green Great Milton Oxford OX44 7NP T 01865 361636 E office@garsingtonopera.org Registered in England No. 2567390