On Wednesday it was UoT Opera’s turn in the RBA.  Pretty much the whole graduate programme appeared in a series of duets, trios and larger ensemble numbers staged by Mabel Wonnacott.  The theme was “love” (well it had to be that or “death”.. this is opera). It was a French and German programme so there was fairly mainstream stuff like the Antonia/Hoffmann duet from Les contes d’Hoffmann and “Hab mir’s gelobt” from Der Rosenkavalier but also rarer material like “Doute de la lumière” from Thomas’ Hamlet.

I’m not going to do a name checked blow-by-blow if only because half the time I didn’t know who was who but I will say the standard was very high across the board and augurs well for the three main stage performances this academic year.  There was a lot of variety on display from fine comic acting in that silly scene “Die Dame gibt mit trübem Sinn” from Ariadne auf Naxos to excellent singing of excerpts from notably difficult works.  It’s impressive that the programme has singers who can cope with Hamlet, Ophélie and the Marschallin.

So let’s talk about the three up coming shows:

• 21st to 24th November Tim Albery is directing three one acters on the theme of islands.  The works are by Lennox Berkeley, Kaija Saariaho and Ralph Vaughan Williams so it’s a chance to see works that aren’t performed so often.  It’s out at York University owing to the ongoing problems with the MacMillan but the good news is it’s right by the subway station.
• Jan 19th 2025 it’s the turn of the Student Opera Collective with a work about Jarvis Street called Avenue of Avarice (libretto by Michael Patrick Albano).  I wonder what one about Sherbourne would be like?  Probably just need to drop a few letters from “Avarice”.  That’s at the Fleck Dance Theatre at Harbourfront (probably harder to get to than York!)
• March 13th to 16th 2025 it’s Mozart’s Così fan tutte in a production by Anna Theodosakis.  Location TBA.  I suspect this is not going to be just about crinolines and wigs.