New versions of Così fan tutte (All Women Are Like That, Mozart, 1790) and Bach’s St John Passion (1724), plus a revival of Giulio Cesere (Julius Caesar, Handel, 1724) form the spring 2020 tour for English Touring Opera (ETO), the company has announced.
Kicking off the tour is a new English-language production of Mozart’s comedy of young love and fidelity Così fan tutte, which opens 29 February at Hackney Empire, London. Director Laura Attridge breathes new life into this classic opera, while Holly Mathieson conducts the ETO’s resident period orchestra, the Old Street Band.
For Bach’s hugely popular oratorio St John Passion, the ETO has commissioned new translations of the Chorales from theological and literary figures including the Anglican priest, journalist and broadcaster Dr Giles Anthony Fraser and former Archbishop of Canterbury and poet Dr Rowan Williams. Described as “an immersive and semi-staged performance”, professional soloists perform with more than 30 choirs from across the country.
ETO’s critically acclaimed 2017 production of Giulio Cesare is being revived for the spring tour. One of Handel’s most celebrated operas, it follows the events surrounding Julius Caesar’s conquest of Egypt, as well as his uneasy alliance and romance with fabled Egyptian queen, Cleopatra.
The production is directed by ETO Artistic Director James Conway, with conductor Jonathan Peter Kenny leading the Old Street Band. It opens at Hackney Empire on 7 March.
The ETO’s spring tour begins on 29 February at Hackney Empire, with all three productions performed over the following few days. They then head off around England performing in venues from Cornwall to Co Durham. The tour ends on 27 June. Tickets are on sale now.
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Così fan tutte, St John Passion and Giulio Cesere feature in English Touring Opera’s spring tour.