- February 2014
The Cambridge University Gilbert & Sullivan Society proudly presents THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE. This timeless comic opera comes to West Road Concert Hall from 5th to 8th February.
Frederic has just finished his apprenticeship with a band of pirates; Mabel is out with her sisters for a day at the beach – they meet, and it's love at first sight. But the pirates have an unpleasant surprise in store for our hero…
One of Gilbert & Sullivan’s best-loved comedies, The Pirates of Penzance features classic numbers such as ‘The Pirate King’, ‘I am the Very Model of a Modern Major General’, and ‘With Cat-like Tread’. Join a crop of not-so-ruthless pirates, not-so-fearless policemen, and not-so-helpless young maidens for a swashbuckling and hilarious adventure.
FAMILY MATINÉE Child tickets for our matinée performance are half-price with the purchase of an adult ticket. Families can sign up to attend a free post-matinée tea and biscuits reception with the cast by emailing westroadpirates@gmail.com. Group discounts are available through the box office for bookings of more than ten persons.
- April–May 2013
The free-spirited Princess Atalanta has escaped to the forest to live as a huntress. Smitten Prince Meleagro will do anything to win her affection – even disguise himself as a lowly shepherd.
When the royal pair get mixed up in the romantic tribulations of a real shepherd and shepherdess, comedy and heartbreak inevitably ensue.
Handel’s delightful pastoral opera includes all the hallmarks of his style: lightness, energy, humour and passion, culminating in jubilant celebration once the course of true love finally does run smooth.
- February 2013
Deep within the woods, a naive fox cub stumbles into a Forester's clutches. Tied up in a yard, she grows up dreaming of freedom. Battling the banality of her existence, surrounded by egg-layers and stick-fetchers, her frustration builds until, in a moment of fury, she breaks loose.
Pursued by her captor, she returns to the wild for the first time since her childhood. Around her, the forest teems with life. Dragonflies dance, badgers doze and a riot of animals resound the coming Spring. As the months pass, the Vixen discovers the world, topples established order and finds love. But before the last season is out, she and the Forester will meet one more time.
From a simple folk tale, this opera weaves a dazzling evocation of nature - of life and death, marriage and regret, drunkenness and unrequited love, fear, pride, grief and, of course, foxes. Janáček fills the stage with all forms of life, human and animal, in a rich tapestry of stories which ultimately coalesce to tell just one – that of the Cunning Little Vixen.
Cambridge University Opera Society’s 2013 Mainshow will combine dance, song, movement, music and more to bring this profound, beautiful, unsentimental opera to the West Road stage, assembling the university’s top performers and creative talents to create a visually spectacular, musically stunning, unmissable show.
- November 2012
Purcell’s opera, “The Fairy Queen”, is based on William Shakespeare’s “Midsummer Night’s Dream”. However, the original spoken text that links the musical episodes together no longer exists, leaving a fragmentary selection of arias sung by drunken poets, frustrated lovers, and mischievous fairies. Taking the incomplete nature of Purcell’s “Dream” as a starting point, this production plans to put on a “Fairy Queen” like you’ve never seen before: William Shakespeare is struggling with writer's block, and after resorting to the bottle out of desperation, falls asleep over his desk. The dreams that follow will provoke an unmissable night of reverie and revelry, interweaving Purcell's original music (accompanied by a live orchestra) with extracts from several of Shakespeare’s plays, the poetry of T.S Elliot and Edgar Allen Poe, and even the writing of Sigmund Freud.
The same team that brought you “Orpheus and Eurydice” in Clare College Chapel in April is looking for a talented performance troupe of 8 singers – 2 soprano, 2 alto, 2 tenor, 2 bass (1 to play the role of William Shakespeare throughout), who are all guaranteed prominent solo roles, as well as sustained stage presence in additional chorus roles. Arias will be cast following auditions, and singers will inhabit multiple roles. Singers will ideally return to Cambridge in September having learnt their parts over the summer, and rehearsals will begin as soon as term starts for the performance in Week 5. There may also be the possibility for additional performances in Michaelmas in more alternative venues…
- February 2012
Cambridge University Opera Society’s production places this much-loved farce in the privileged world of twenty-first century young socialites. Bubbling with infectious energy and fizzing with melodious charm, Strauss’s Die Fledermaus will leave you as giggly as those onstage (champagne optional).
Prince Orlofsky is throwing a party, and Falke has orchestrated some real-life drama for the Prince’s entertainment. All in revenge for the time his best friend Eisenstein left him in the middle of town, passed out and dressed as a bat...
Everyone who’s anyone is going to be there. They just don’t want each other to know. Eisenstein should be in prison so he’s keeping a low profile, especially as police-chief Frank is also there in disguise. Eistenstein’s wife, having left her former lover locked up in her husband’s prison cell, is also keen to conceal her identity. Their maid Adele should be tending to her sick aunt, not partying with her sister. With the help of a bit of waltzing and copious amounts of champagne, everyone’s identities will be exposed, and their philandering revealed.
- February 2012
'Far from the Madding Crowd' is a new opera written by Barnaby Martin, a student in Trinity College, based on Hardy's novel.
It is the epitome of addictive love stories. Set in the rural landscape of Hardy’s fictitious ‘Wessex’, it follows the turbulent affairs of Bathsheba Everdene and her relationship with three men, all of whom fall deeply in love with her. It is a dramatic portrayal of love and loss and everything in between.
This is the first time ever that a new full-scale opera has been put on in Cambridge.
- October 2011
Experience the charms of Prokofiev’s children’s fairytale, Peter and the Wolf which has inspired generations of young musicians and is a treat not to be missed! This special performance for schools and families will draw on the talents of Cambridge University musicians to bring alive a beautiful piece of music which will capture the imaginations of all the young people attending and introduce the world of classical music in a magical way. The performance will be conducted by Harry Ogg, narrated by Oskar McCarthy and a new set of graphics will be designed and displayed by Daniel Strange to help bring the performance to life. The concert will also include an interactive guessing game based on a performance of The Carnival of the Animals to get the children more involved in the music.
- February 2011
Below-stairs in the Almaviva household, Figaro and Susanna are blissfully happy: it's finally their wedding day. But even today there is nowhere to hide from the ringing of the servant's bell - and this time the Count is ringing for Susanna. The Countess is abandoned to her secluded garret, as the Count prowls the servants quarters, determined to add Susanna's name to the others in his little black book. Constantly aware of every creaking door, every watchful eye, Figaro and Susanna know they must rely on their wits, but can they pull off their wedding? And will they live happily ever after?
Cambridge University Opera Society are delighted to present Mozart's Marriage of Figaro. Set in the back passages of 18th century England and starring some of Cambridge's finest singers, this new production celebrates both the darkness and the hilarity of this much-loved comic opera.
- February 2011
GILBERT & SULLIVAN SOCIETY 50TH ANNIVERSARY GALA 'An Evening with Gilbert and Sullivan'
Wed 16 February (Week 4) West Road Concert Hall
Singers wanted for 'An Evening with Gilbert and Sullivan' - a grand gala concert to launch the 50th Anniversary of the Cambridge University G&S Society. The event will feature a mix of Gilbert & Sullivan's best-loved songs and scenes, works inspired by the duo, and reminiscences from the society's history. It's a fantastic opportunity to celebrate fifty years performing the works of this mighty pair.
AUDITIONS
Sat 22 January, 1-5pm - Trinity Hall Music Room Mon 24 January, 5-9pm, Caius Bateman Room
You will be asked to sing a song and read some dialogue, so please come prepared to sing a song, preferably G&S or a similar musical style. If there's a particular solo/ensemble song you're dying to perform in the concert, we'd be more than happy to hear it, or if not just pick anything. Your chances will not be affected either way. Similarly, if there's a particular scene or monologue you want to do, please come share your ideas with us and perform it, otherwise dialogue will be provided. If you have a self-written comic sketch about Victorian light opera tucked up you sleeve, bring it along! G&S and other well-known scores will be provided.
Group auditions very welcome for ensemble numbers - you can audition both for a solo and as part of a group.
For some suggestions, please see the attached list, or feel free to choose your own favorite! If you need the sheet music, email our artistic director Rosie at mrc58@cam.ac.uk with your song choice BEFORE MIDNIGHT ON WEDNESDAY 19TH JANUARY with your name and college and we will send you a score. A comprehensive collection of music and libretti from all the operas is also available online at http://math.boisestate.edu/gas/.
If you're an instrumentalist and would be interested in joining our orchestra and playing some of the most deliciously upbeat music ever written, please e-mail Sunil at sjm220@cam.ac.uk.
Any other questions? Please e-mail our producer Felicity at frs24@cam.ac.uk.
- February 2011
Stravinsky's neoclassical setting of W. H. Auden's tragic masterpiece, based around the 18th century engravings of William Hogarth.
Lured away from his quiet country life with sweetheart Anne Truelove, Tom Rakewell descends to the raucous delights of a dissolute London life, aided by the enigmatic Nick Shadow. A disastrous marriage to the bearded lady Baba the Turk, spiralling debts, and distaste for the debauchery that surrounds him eventually provoke the madness that consigns him to Bedlam.
"For idle hands and hearts and mind, the devil finds a work to do".
- February 2010
- February 2010
Cambridge University Opera Society presents Pelléas et Mélisande Opera by Claude Debussy Adapted from the play by Maurice Maeterlinck Performed in the original French 'all destiny appears to our eyes as if reversed' (Maeterlinck)
Wednesday 17th February - Saturday 20th February, West Road Concert Hall £9 / £15.
Tickets are available from the ADC theatre Box Office, at www.adcticketing.com.
Pelléas et Mélisande is a gem of Symbolist opera, what Olivier Messiaen called 'the great, quite exceptional masterpieces of opera' (1979), certainly at the peak of 20th century operatic composition.
Maeterlinck's characters are guided through fate's path as marionettes. Death hangs constantly over the characters with absolute inevitability. Death as it occurs is purely symbolic, as none of the characters were ever alive, in accordance with Maeterlinck's belief that 'poems die when living people get into them'. The souls which wander the stage in Pelléas et Mélisande are merely symbols of humanity. All we see is a single moment, a visible flash of an infinite cycle of life. The characters reveal infinite truths which will recur along with the continuation of mankind - lies, murder for jealousy, possession within love, innocence, and corruption. Ultimately, there is fundamental truth 'la verite', for which Golaud pleads Melisande on her deathbed; 'Tell me no more lies at the moment of death'.But the truth will never be revealed. At her death, Melisande's whispers the words 'the truth? The truth?' and Golaud cries out in agony: 'Now I shall never know. I shall die without knowing, in my blindness.'
- January 2010
This new and exciting opera has been written by Benjamin Cox to an original libretto by Edward Herring. The emotional and tragic story tells the life of Catherine of Alexandria. At the mere age of 17, Catherine sees a vision of herself being betrothed to Christ and so begins to preach Christianity in pagan Alexandria. In doing so, she attracts the attentions of the Roman Emperor Maxentius who tries to disgrace her faith publicly. When this fails, Maxentius resorts to more and more brutal methods to turn Catherine to his views, sacrificing his wife and his most loyal advisor in his quest for dominance over Catherine.
- February 2009
This year CUOS returns to West Road for an ambitious and exciting production of Tchaikovsky's most well-known opera, Eugene Onegin. We hope to follow up on last year's sell-out run of Don Giovanni with another equally compelling and challenging show.
- February 2008
The only rule is don't be boring..." Paris Hilton
And no-one could accuse Mozart's Don Giovanni of being boring. Legendary more like, with a reputation greater than Jack Nicholson, Russell Brand and Casanova combined. This bold, exciting new production comes to life in the dazzling lights of the city, throwing the Don headlong into the paparazzi-ridden world of modern celebrity. With a thought-provoking spin on da Ponte's heady tale join us for an evening of decadence, humour, high drama - and an infamously hellish climax.
From the production team that brought you the "totally compelling… totally convincing… best thing I had seen in Cambridge" (Varsity) opera that was Les Incas du Perou comes another theatrical extravaganza that promises to be CUOS' biggest, boldest and best show to date.
www.dongiovanni2008.com
- February 2008
- February 2007
In a story-book world, young Hansel and Gretel get lost in the woods, chancing upon an enchanted cottage made of sweets, and an old woman who wants to bring them both to a very sticky end. This timeless tale of the perils of a sweet tooth is charmingly brought to life by Humperdinck's score, which is simultaneously highly Romantic and touchingly naive - an unlikely combination, perhaps, but one which has proved a perennial favourite since its premier in 1893. This production is being double cast to accommodate four performances over three days, and in order to involve as many students as possible; an ambitious education project will also involve young people in the local community. A great favourite with children and adults alike for over a century, and ideally suited to student voices, 'Hansel and Gretel' promises to be a thoroughly magical production. For tickets visit www.hanselandgretel2007.com or call 020 81445433.
- February 2006
Cambridge University Opera Society marks Mozart's 250th anniversary with a grand and sparkling production of The Marriage of Figaro, one of the composer's best loved operas.
- February 2006
Written in 1735 as part of Rameau's opera-ballet "Les Indes Gallantes", "Les Incas du Perou" is a succint, exciting and colourful piece of musical theatre. Featuring the cream of Cambridge University's dancers, musicians and singers, and preceded by a recital of baroque sonatas by David Irving and James McVinnie, this evening was described by Varsity as "the best thing I had seen in Cambridge". More details on the production and the challenges it posed, or on the opera itself, can be obtained from bn217@cam.ac.uk
- December–November 2005
- February 2005
Cambridge University Opera Society presents THE RAKE'S PROGRESS by Igor Stravinsky, libretto by W H Auden & Chester Kallman.
The Rake’s Progress charts Tom Rakewell’s journey from the idyllic country, where he is celebrating the beauty of spring with his true love Anne, to a decadent, corrupt London where he will be seduced by whores, become bankrupt and eventually end up in Bedlam. The journey is also a psychological one for Tom, who initially shirks his responsibilities and allows himself to be led astray but finally repents and recognises his former ‘madness’, though ironically he is by this time himself in a madhouse.
Our production emphasises the hostility and individualism of the city whilst maintaining a strong flavour of the tongue-in-cheek aspect of this moral fable. With such colourful personalities as the devil, a bearded lady and hoards of whores and madmen, this is sure to be a night to remember.
- October 2004
The opera, based on Henry James' novella, centres on a young governess who is sent to look after two children at an English estate. She soon discovers that the house is haunted by the ghosts of the former governess and the former master's valet. It becomes increasingly apparent that something unsavoury happened between these empoyees and the children, and this appears to be continuing even after their deaths...
