Australia’s newest opera company, National Opera, is set to open its inaugural 2021 season with La Clemenza di Tito debuting at Llewellyn Hall – ANU School of Music, Canberra in April 2021.
With Artistic Director, the esteemed Peter Coleman-Wright AO at the helm, and featuring a star-studded lineup of all-Australian cast members, La Clemenza di Tito is the first production from the newly launched company, helping cement its place as the launch pad for Australia’s young opera artists of the future.
The production has enlisted up-and-coming local talent to join with some of Australia’s most prolific names in the industry – including critically acclaimed Bradley Daley and Helena Dix, Andrew Collis, as well as Canberra’s very own Catherine Carby and Eleanor Greenwood.
The line-up also includes young Sydney based operatic talent, Mikayla Tate, who will be marking La Clemenza di Tito as her first major professional performance.
The Canberra Symphony Orchestra will accompany the cast to perform the rich score of sublime music, under the direction of rising star Dane Lam. Rachel Thomas, CEO of the Canberra Symphony Orchestra, is pleased to be bringing La Clemenza di Tito to the stage.
“The Canberra Symphony Orchestra is delighted to be partnering with National Opera to bring this production to Canberra audiences,” said Ms Thomas. “This is a wonderful example of the collaborative ethos that characterise the ACT arts ecosystem.”
As the arts scene starts to slowly emerge from the debris of the pandemic, Mr Coleman-Wright is thrilled to hold this opening production of La Clemenza di Tito.
”2020 was an extremely challenging year for the arts, making it the hardest hit industry of COVID-19’s economic destruction,” said Mr Coleman-Wright. “It’ll take the industry some time to recover, but as such an integral part of Australia’s rich culture, there is no doubt that it will survive and come back stronger beyond the pandemic.”
“Through the hardships, the talent we worked with at National Opera all maintained an incredible optimism and resilience, we were able to curate and grow a family of incredibly talented performers, knowing that it was only a matter of time before we could share the fruits of our labor with the local community.”
”La Clemenza di Tito holds much significance for us, not only is the performance and cast utterly spellbinding, but it marks our first public performance as we enter this new era of post-COVID recovery. And that is surely something to celebrate,” said Mr Coleman-Wright.
During the pandemic, the National Opera was able to attract many new homegrown talents despite being a newly founded organisation, thanks to its supporters and sponsors’ continued belief in the vision.
La Clemenza di Tito is a celebration of just that, and part of the National Opera’s long-term mission to cultivate a supportive and collaborative environment, nurturing Australia’s very own operatic talent.
La Clemenza di Tito will be presented at Llewellyn Hall – ANU School of Music, Canberra: 10, 13, 15 & 17 April 2021. For more information, visit: www.nationalopera.org.au for details.
Image: Peter Coleman-Wright AO – photo by Keith Saunders