Update
Opera Holland Park (OHP) has now revealed further details of the special guests and performers who will be attending the west London-based company’s Winter Gala, as well as what’s up for grabs in its silent auction.
Guests joining the celebration include Jonathan Dove, composer of OHP’s newly commissioned opera, Itch, as well as stars featuring in the company’s 2023 season. British baritones Ross Ramgobin and Stephen Gadd, and British mezzo-soprano Victoria Simmonds are set to perform at the event, alongside the Opera Holland Park Chorus.
The evening will also feature the company’s silent auction, which, OHP says, comprises the largest and most varied list of lots it has ever presented. These include front row tickets to Cabaret in the West End, a Viking European river cruise and champagne tea at Highgrove House.
Also on offer is a range of bespoke operatic experiences including a private view of the designs for next year’s productions of Verdi’s Rigoletto (1851) and Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel (1893), a recital in your own home with cocktails provided by our CEO and director of opera, James Clutton, and a singing lesson with the great lyric soprano Amanda Roocroft.
“Enjoy an evening of imaginative performances, sumptuous food and drink, and meet the cast and creatives of our upcoming season while helping to raise vital funds for our upcoming projects and work in the community,” Opera Holland Park said in a statement.
Originally published, 11 November 2022:
West London-based Opera Holland Park (OHP) has announced details of its Winter Gala for 2022. The event will take place on 14 December at London’s stunning Draper’s Hall; doors open at 6.45pm.
“The Board of Trustees and chief executive of Opera Holland Park request the pleasure of your company at the Opera Holland Park Winter Gala in aid of our future projects and work in the community,” the company said in a statement.
OHP’s fundraising galas are the only black tie events in the company’s calendar. The evening will feature a broad range of arias, duets, choruses and semi-staged scenes from some of the most well-known operatic repertoire performed by OHP’s principal artists and the Opera Holland Park Chorus.
The Winter Gala commences with a champagne reception. Over dinner, guests will be joined at their tables by members of OHP’s team, along with singers and creatives. They will enjoy a specially curated programme of intimate performances throughout the evening.
After-dinner drinks will provide the opportunity for guests to mingle with performers and team members, as well as fellow opera enthusiasts. The event also includes a silent auction.
The focus of this year’s Winter Gala is to raise money for Opera Holland Park’s 2023 season, the highlight of which is sure to be the world premiere of Jonathan Dove’s new opera for families, Itch. This new work, commissioned by Opera Holland Park and Toronto’s Canadian Opera Company, is based on the best-selling novels Itch and Itch Rocks by radio DJ Simon Mayo.
The season also includes new productions of Humperdinck’s cautionary fairytale Hansel and Gretel (1893), Verdi’s gripping tragedy Rigoletto (1851) and Puccini’s bittersweet portrait of love and friendship La bohème (The Bohemians, 1896), as well as a co-production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s comedy of ancestral ghosts, obligatory wickedness and falsified tax returns, Ruddigore (1887), with Charles Court Opera.
Funds raised will also help fund the vital year-round outreach and education work of OHP’s Inspire programme. This award-winning project was created in 2010 in recognition of the company’s social responsibility to its local community.
All tickets purchased, as well as the proceeds of the silent auction, will go directly to supporting OHP’s work.
Tickets to the Winter Gala are on sale now, with individual tickets costing £350, including a non-obligatory donation of £150. A full table of eight guests can be purchased for £2,800, including a non-obligatory donation of £1,200. Members may be eligible for discounts.
Opera Holland Park’s previous gala took place in February 2022. Performances can be viewed on the company’s YouTube channel, or below.
Plymouth-born mezzo-soprano and OHP Young Artist alumna Charlotte Badham, who played Jo in the company’s UK premiere of Mark Adamo’s Little Women (1998), performed Jo’s aria ‘Couldn’t I unbake the breads’ from the opera, with Wyn Hyland at the piano.
French soprano Anne Sophie Duprels sung ‘Se come voi piccina’ from Puccini’s Le Villi (The Fairies, 1884).
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Taking place at London’s Drapers Hall on 14 December, Opera Holland Park’s Winter Gala will feature a selection of songs, choruses and semi-staged performances throughout the evening.