Royal College of Music Opera Studio Takes Flight This Summer

Jonathan Dove's comedy opera, Flight, lands at the Royal College of Music's (RCM) Britten Theatre next month with a special production by acclaimed director Jeremy Sams. In what will be the 35th staging of Flight, Jonathan Dove will also be involved in the unique creative direction of this production.

Flight has become one of the most popular and most performed British operas of recent years. Sams' reimagining for the RCM Opera Studio gives audiences the chance to experience the story as never before, drawing on abstract ideas of timelessness, magic and mystery.

Set in the departure lounge of an airport, Flight tells the story of a group of passengers and crew members whose planes have been delayed by a storm. In a busy, always-on world, the characters are forced to pause, reflect on their lives and reconsider their respective relationships. Whilst each pair has little in common on the surface, they are brought together by universal concerns of love, identity, hope, birth and death. The stories of this disparate group of people include an immigration officer, a diplomat and his pregnant wife, an older woman awaiting her younger fiancé and a married couple in a rut; all centred around a refugee stranded at the airport. Flight underscores the difference between us and the sense of humanity that connects us all.

Written for Glyndebourne in 1998, Flight catapulted Jonathan Dove to international renown and has been staged around the world. The opera's libretto, by leading British playwright April De Angelis, is based on the true story of Mehran Nasseri, an Iranian refugee who was stranded in Paris' Charles de Gaulle airport for 18 years. The poignant story also inspired Steven Spielberg's 2004 film The Terminal.

As is traditional for RCM Opera Studio Productions, two casts will alternate performances, giving as many young singers as possible the chance to take to the RCM's Britten Theatre stage.

To book tickets please visit the RCM website.

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