About Opera South East
- Opera South East is based in Hastings and is one of the few companies in the South East to regularly perform opera with full chorus and orchestra.
- We attract established singers and musicians as well as young professional performers at the start of their career. At its heart is a chorus of enthusiastic and friendly amateur singers under professional music and artistic direction.
- We welcome new members of all ages interested in any aspect of opera performance, be that on or off stage
Who we are?
We are a project-based choral company, mainly focussing on opera and operetta performances, with occasional other events such as concerts, wedding choirs and social events. Since 2025 we have performed in concert with the Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra under the musical direction of Marcio da Silva who engages principals through an academy system, and often young singers from HPO Songbirds, bringing together enthusiastic amateurs and emerging/established professionals to provide a unique opportunity for singers of all ages and backgrounds to experience the thrill of opera performance with a full orchestra.
What we do?
Until 2025, we presented fully staged operas in and around Hastings that are affordable and accessible to everyone, performing high quality productions in English to encourage new audiences. We enable emerging singers to gain valuable performance experience under professional musical and artistic direction. We present galas and concerts, lectures and workshops in order to strengthen our involvement with the wider community.
Prior to this, we produced operas for 45 years (formally since 1980 with a constitution from 1983) and have been a registered charity for 38 years (since 1988). Until 2025 we focused on producing fully-staged operas in our own name, including hiring the venue, principal singers and the Sussex Concert Orchestra, typically 35-piece. We attracted established singers and musicians as well as young professional performers at the start of their career. At its heart is a chorus of enthusiastic and friendly amateur singers under professional music and artistic direction, which very much remains. We welcome new chorus members. Financing this has proved to be an increasing challenge for us in recent years, hence our new and sustainable position as a Project-based organisation, with our chorus members signing-up for each production.
Prior to this, we produced operas for 45 years (formally since 1980 with a constitution from 1983) and have been a registered charity for 38 years (since 1988). Until 2025 we focused on producing fully-staged operas in our own name, including hiring the venue, principal singers and the Sussex Concert Orchestra, typically 35-piece. We attracted established singers and musicians as well as young professional performers at the start of their career. At its heart is a chorus of enthusiastic and friendly amateur singers under professional music and artistic direction, which very much remains. We welcome new chorus members. Financing this has proved to be an increasing challenge for us in recent years, hence our new and sustainable position as a Project-based organisation, with our chorus members signing-up for each production.
Where and when we do it?
We typically hold two fully staged opera productions operas (in the Spring and/or Autumn). Concerts also take place throughout the year in various local venues.
We rehearse on Sunday afternoons or evenings, and the occasional weekday evenings in show-week, at the St John's Church Hall, Brittany Road, TN38 0RD or 10 minute walk from Warrior Square Station) - map link maps.app.goo.gl/QC8dNeswuZta5kbe7
We rehearse on Sunday afternoons or evenings, and the occasional weekday evenings in show-week, at the St John's Church Hall, Brittany Road, TN38 0RD or 10 minute walk from Warrior Square Station) - map link maps.app.goo.gl/QC8dNeswuZta5kbe7
Why we do it?
Good question! Opera is often seen as elitist and we want to dispel that myth. Our members are all shapes and sizes, all ages and from varied backgrounds. The one thing we have in common is our love of opera. We delight in introducing opera to new audiences, especially children (who go free to all our productions when accompanied by an adult).
|
|
History of Opera South East
As with many performing arts organisations, establishing the exact date of inception of Opera South East poses some problems. The company adopted its current name in 1997, but had been known as Hastings Opera since 1983 when the company was first formally constituted. However, six staged productions had already been performed by then during which time the name gradually drifted from The Essenden Ensemble to Hastings Opera.
The Essenden Ensemble traced its origins back to 1973 when many of the early protagonists were still at school. It began as a motley collection of instrumentalists playing specially arranged music, progressed to choral and orchestral concerts, thence to Gilbert & Sullivan and so on to Mozart Operas and the first production of 'Carmen' at the White Rock Pavilion in 1983. A chorus member from the 2014 production of Carmen who was also in the 1983 production noted recently how much we have come on in our performances from those early days! (You'd hope so!)
The Essenden Ensemble traced its origins back to 1973 when many of the early protagonists were still at school. It began as a motley collection of instrumentalists playing specially arranged music, progressed to choral and orchestral concerts, thence to Gilbert & Sullivan and so on to Mozart Operas and the first production of 'Carmen' at the White Rock Pavilion in 1983. A chorus member from the 2014 production of Carmen who was also in the 1983 production noted recently how much we have come on in our performances from those early days! (You'd hope so!)
The FIRST Opera Figaro, 1980
|
The Merry Widow, 1986
|
Please navigate the menu bar under the 'About us...' heading above for details of the former names of the current Opera South East, and more photos of those early days will be added. See also:
- About Opera South East - who we are, what we do and where we do it
- Join us ...
- Support us...