North London’s Hampstead Garden Opera (HGO) has revealed details of its annual Summer Concert. Called A Wonderful Dream, the event will take place at St Michael’s Church in Highgate, north London, on 24 July.

The concert will feature several performers from previous HGO productions singing a selection of opera favourites. The programme is set to include arias and ensembles by, among others, Monteverdi, Handel, Gluck, Bellini, Borodin, Verdi and Puccini. It will end with Johann Strauss’s rollicking Champagne ensemble from Die Fledermaus (The Bat, 1874).

The singers include soprano Lizzie Holmes and tenor Jack Roberts, who both starred in HGO’s 2020 production of Sāvitri (Holst, 1916). Baritone Dan D’Souza will also be returning to HGO’s stage. He is another star of Holst’s one-act chamber opera based on the episode of Savitri and Satyavan from the Mahābhārata, as well as a 2018 production of Cimarosa’s opera buffa – Italian for comic opera, this represented a lighter style than the more serious opera seria and tended towards everyday settings and simpler vocal writing – The Secret Marriage (1792),

Countertenor Francis Gush, who sang in a 2018 production of Handel’s Partenope (1730), will be performing, too. Concert director Hannah Quinn will be directing proceedings from the piano.

Tickets cost from £15 and are available to purchase from TicketTailor now. A detailed ‘flip-book’ programme with a full list of the concert items and bios of the performers will be emailed to ticket-holders a few days before the event.

“We are delighted and excited to bring you news of our summer concert on 24 July, a perfect release for the first weekend after the long-awaited end of lockdown,” HGO said in a statement.

“As we all know, though, things have a habit of changing unexpectedly these days. Be assured that should any health measures for public performances be in place on 24 July, the concert will be organised in strict accordance with them and we will notify all ticket-purchasers accordingly.

“We look forward to seeing you for an exceptional celebration of inspirational music and sparkling talent.”

 

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Hampstead Garden Opera will be staging its annual Summer Concert, A Wonderful Dream, at St Michael’s Church in Highgate on 24 July.