Lynette Gunnion Andrew at Opera in the Park, with Angus Simmons (left) Andrew Gordon is New Zealand Opera’s Participation Co-ordinator. One of his major projects each year is going on the road with our Opera in Schools programme as tour manager. Andrew is also a freelance actor, writer and theatre director, and for this year’s Opera in … Read more
This ANZAC weekend, we have some special music to share. The Juniper Passion is about the Battle of Montecassino in 1944. The work, by New Zealand composer Michael Williams and librettist John Davies in 2011, was performed in Rome in 2013, featuring a cast of New Zealand and Italian singers alongside The Juniper Passion Dance … Read more
Creative New Zealand’s new advocacy campaign Thankful for Art reminds us to let creatives know that we appreciate the art they give us, by sharing the art we love on social media with the hashtag #TFA. We’re thankful for art. Right now in homes around AotearoaNew Zealand, we’re thankful for art. Let’s show it! Ināianei, … Read more
Così fan tutte at The Royal Opera House There’s no end of entertaining content on the internet, and it’s exciting to see opera houses around the world releasing full productions from their archives. An Easter special from Andrea Bocelli If you’re not one of the 35 million people who have already watched Andrea Bocelli’s Easter … Read more
After several weeks in ‘lockdown’ I’m sure we are all feeling a little restless. The need for some new activities, new focus and energy. We’ve found some interactive musical apps for kids including one titled ‘Let’s go to the opera’. We share a some insights and an animated story about the life of Mozart and … Read more
Boheme at Welsh National Opera, with Shengzhi Ren, photography by Kirsten McTernan Eliza Boom was a 2017 Dame Malvina Major Scholar with New Zealand Opera. Since then, she’s continued honing her craft overseas, returning home regularly and being placed runner up in the 2018 Lexus Song Quest. Most recently, she’s been training at the National … Read more
Rosalind Hemmings is New Zealand Opera’s Development Manager, having joined the company in mid-2019. The role encompasses events, sponsorship and benefaction and keeps her extremely busy – even now as she works from home during Alert Level 4. “Working from home isn’t easy, but we keep each other going whether it’s a phone call, video … Read more
Rosina (Sandra Piques Eddy) and Count Almaviva (John Tessier) in New Zealand Opera’s production of The Barber of Seville 2019. Opera is a type of theatre which combines drama, music, elements of dance or movement and, often, exciting costumes and set. However, in opera, the actors are trained singers who sing their lines instead of … Read more
In the rehearsal room for The Turn of The Screw. Credit Michael Bradley General Director Thomas de Mallet Burgess joined New Zealand Opera in mid-2018. While the role is his first in New Zealand, it’s just the latest in a decades-long career in opera. Thomas is currently in a ‘bubble’ in Orakei with his “Swiss … Read more
Imogen lounging around backstage during La Rondine. Credit: Pedro Arroyo It’s coming up three years since Imogen Thirlwall left Wellington to pursue singing in Europe – but you may remember seeing her on stage in many of our New Zealand Opera productions, she was a member of the Freemasons New Zealand Opera Chorus and a Dame Malvina … Read more