The spring season at Welsh National Opera

Welsh National Opera’s Spring Season opens with two new productions; an operatic favourite from Mozart, and a rare chance to see Britten’s final opera.

(Death In Venice/WNO)

The Spring 2024 sees us go back to school with a brand-new production of Mozart’s Così fan tutte, where four sixth formers receive a valuable lesson in love, life, and liberty. Witness ravishing beauty, the grotesque, and the sublime in the brand-new production of Britten’s Death in Venice. Completing the Season is an Opera Favourites concert – your ultimate operatic pick-and-mix. Cosi fan tutte First up is a new production of Mozart’s Così fan tutte, which opens in Cardiff on 24 February, under the baton of WNO Music Director Tomáš Hanus. Max Hoehn returns to direct this coming-of-age tale which takes audiences back to school where four young students discover the highs and lows of falling in love.

Soprano Sophie Bevan returns to WNO to sing the role of Fiordiligi, and Welsh soprano Rebecca Evans also returns as Despina. Making their role debuts in this new production are Kayleigh Decker (Dorabella), Egor Zhuravskii (Ferrando) and James Atkinson (Guglielmo) who alongside Sophie Bevan make up the foursome of young lovers. Also joining the cast is José Fardilha as Don Alfonso. Death in Venice WNO will also stage a new production of Britten’s Death in Venice during the Spring Season, which will be the first time the Company has staged this opera. Olivia Fuchs returns to WNO to direct Death in Venice, with Circus Design and Direction from NoFit State and Firenza Guidi. Based on the novella of the same name by Thomas Mann, the story follows writer Gustav von Aschenbach as he journeys to Venice to rid himself of his writer’s block. While there, he becomes infatuated with the youthful and beautiful Tadzio. NoFit State will bring a mixture of acrobatics that will incorporate silks, straps and slackropes and other circus elements, which interweave throughout the opera, exploring an edgy quirkiness and adding to the lyricism of the piece.

British Conductor Leo Hussain will make his WNO debut conducting this new production. Mark Le Brocq returns to WNO to make his role debut as Aschenbach, with Roderick Williams as the Traveller guiding him towards his fate. Alexander Chance will sing the countertenor role of the Voice of Apollo. Also joining the cast and making his Company debut in the role of Tadzio is Antony César. Antony is a variety and circus performer who won the Golden Buzzer on France’s version of Britain’s Got Talent, La France Incroyable Talent. Opera Favourites In addition to the operas, the Company will perform an Opera Favourites concert in Cardiff, Llandudno, Southampton, Bristol, and Plymouth, offering audiences the chance to hear and enjoy some of the best-known pieces in the operatic world.

The concert will bring together WNO Orchestra, WNO Chorus, WNO Associate Artists as well as former WNO Associate Artist Adam Gilbert and guest artist James Cleverton. Frederick Brown and Edmund Whitehead will conduct the concert that will feature well known arias, choral and orchestral numbers including music by Mozart, Verdi, Britten and Puccini amongst others. For further details visit wno.org.uk and to book tickets visit wmc.org.uk.