Stephen Langridge has been appointed artistic director at Glyndebourne, the Sussex-based opera house has announced. Currently working as director of opera and drama for the Gothenburg Opera in Sweden, London-born Stephen will take up his new role in spring 2019.

During his five-year tenure at Gothenburg Opera he has directed productions including Elektra (Strauss, 1909), Le nozze de Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro, Mozart, 1786) and Ambroise Thomas’s Hamlet (1868). A strong advocate of contemporary music, he has directed several world premieres, including productions for the Royal Opera House, Aldeburgh Festival, Dutch National Touring Opera and Glyndebourne.

Stephen is well known for his education, development and training work. He has previously worked at Glyndebourne directing a number of education projects, including two youth operas commissioned by Glyndebourne for the main stage – Misper (1997) and Zoë (2000), both written by Scottish composer John Lunn.

Stephen commented: “Underlying all my work is the belief that opera is a natural and dynamic form of human expression, to which everybody should have access, both as a participant and audience. I am thrilled to take up this appointment as artistic director of Glyndebourne, and join the superb team of talented and ambitious people making extraordinary and transformational opera experiences.”

Another aspect of Stephen’s work is producing theatre in unusual settings, such as Bernstein’s West Side Story and Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar with large casts of prisoners in various British high-security prisons, and Ngoma, a multi-racial music and theatre project in South African townships.

Glyndebourne’s Music Director Robin Ticciati added: “I am hugely looking forward to creating Glyndebourne’s next chapter with Stephen. His vision of what opera can represent for people today and how it can develop as an artform excites me greatly.”

 

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Stephen Langridge has been appointed artistic director at Glyndebourne.