63rd Wexford Festival Opera, Reports Increased Sales and Announces Details of Next Festival

As the lights went down on the 63rd Wexford Festival Opera, Festival organisers reported an increase in overall ticket sales for this internationally renowned opera festival. Over 20,000 tickets were sold for the 12 day Festival, which featured three mainstage operas and a number of Shortworks operas and other daytime events.

It has been a busy year for the Festival. Last month saw the announcement of the new President of Wexford Festival Trust, the well-known international opera supporter and philanthropist, Sir David Davies. The stunning Opera House on High Street in Wexford was also officially recognised as Ireland's National Opera House, an honour which was announced by the Minister for the Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphries, on the opening night of the Festival.

There have also been many developments behind the scenes. The Festival continues its long tradition of nurturing talent both on and off the stage. 2014 saw six production interns from the technical theatre department at the LIR and Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology (IADT), enhance their training by working alongside the Festival's expert production teams. The Festival also continues to recognise and support emerging talents on stage with the annual awarding of artistic bursaries. This year the Arnhold Bursary was awarded to two recipients from the chorus, Canadian soprano Johane Ansell and Irish baritone Rory Musgrave. The Aria Friends Bursary was awarded to Irish Mezzo-soprano Kate Allen, who made her professional Irish opera debut in Silent Night and La Cenerentola.

The Festival also continues to expand its orchestra outreach and education programme. Now in its second year, the programme sees members of the orchestra go into local primary schools in Wexford to reveal the real people behind the operas, the real instruments behind the music and hopefully spark an interest in music in the students.

As the curtain fell on the final performance of the Festival, the Pulitzer-prize-winning opera Silent Night by Kevin Puts, the Artistic Director David Agler took to the stage to officially announce details of the 2015 Festival programme: 'I am proud to be standing before you for the tenth time as Artistic Director of Wexford Festival Opera. In ten seasons I have produced this Festival in four separate venues, established the Orchestra of Wexford Festival Opera and a dedicated professional chorus and opened a brand-new opera house. Tonight it is of special significance as I address you from Ireland's National Opera House to announce the three mainstage operas for the 64th Festival: Koanga by Frederick Delius, regarded as the first African-American opera, Guglielmo Ratcliff by Pietro Mascagni, a tragic opera that is deemed to have one of the most demanding tenor roles ever written, and Le Pré au clercs by Ferdinand Hérold, often described as the perfect example of an opéra comique. The full programme will be announced early in the new year', said Artistic Director David Agler.

The 64th Wexford Festival Opera will run from Wednesday, 21 October to Sunday, 1 November, 2015. Priority booking for all performances opens on Saturday, 28 February 2015. To avail of one month's priority booking become a Friend of Wexford Festival Opera online: www.wexfordopera.com General Booking opens on Saturday, 28 March 2015.

The 63rd Wexford Festival Opera is grant-aided by the Arts Council, Fáilte Ireland, and Wexford County Council.

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64th Wexford Festival Opera, 21 October - 1 November, 2015:

REPERTOIRE

Koanga by Frederick Delius

Lyric drama in a prologue, three acts and epilogue

Libretto by Charles F Keary

First performance (in German translation by Jelka Delius) in the Stadttheater, Elberfeld , Germany on 30 March 1904

Sung in English

Guglielmo Ratcliff by Pietro Mascagni

Tragedia in four scenes

Libretto based on Italian translation by Andrea Maffei of the play Wilhelm Ratcliff by Heinrich Heine

First performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan on 16 February 1895

Sung in Italian

Le Pré aux clercs by Ferdinand Hérold

Opéra comique in three acts

Libretto by Francois-Antoine-Eugène de Planard after Chronique du temps de Charles IX by Prosper Merimée

First performed at the Opéra-Comique (Salle de la Bourse), Paris on 15 December 1832

Sung in French

Wexford Festival Opera @wexfordopera

Press information:

Elizabeth Rose-Browne / Media Relations Manager / Wexford Festival Opera

Tel: +353 53 916 3523 / +353 87 211 6903 press@wexfordopera.com

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UK press enquiries please contact:

Joanna Townsend / Joanna.hoban@btinternet.com / +44 (0)7970 871352 (mobile)

Elizabeth Rose-Browne

Media Relations Manager

Wexford Festival Opera

Wexford Opera House

T: +353 (0)53 916 3523 (direct)

M: +353 (0)87 211 6903

www.wexfordopera.com

www.wexfordoperahouse.ie

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