INO_Rigoletto_2024_programme

Verdi

IRISH NATIONAL OPERA

PRINCIPAL FUNDER

GIUSEPPE VERDI 1813 – 1901

RIGOLETTO

1851

A CO-PRODUCTION WITH

SANTA FE OPERA

AND OPERA ZUID, IN

ASSOCIATION WITH

BORD GÁIS ENERGY

THEATRE.

A CO-PRODUCTION WITH SANTA FE OPERA AND OPERA ZUID,

IN ASSOCIATION WITH BORD GÁIS ENERGY THEATRE.

OPERA IN THREE ACTS

The Italian libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on the 1832 play

Le roi s’amuse by Victor Hugo.

First Performance Teatro la Fenice, Venice, 11 March 1851.

First Irish Performance Theatre Royal, Dublin, 4 August 1857.

SUNG IN ITALIAN WITH ENGLISH SURTITLES

Running time 2 hours and 30 minutes, including one interval.

The performances on 3 and 5 December will be recorded for future broadcast

on RTÉ lyric fm.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Thanks to the Alliance Française and Artane School

of Music.

PERFORMANCES 2024

Sunday 1 December Bord Gáis Energy Theatre Dublin

Tuesday 3 December Bord Gáis Energy Theatre Dublin

Thursday 5 December Bord Gáis Energy Theatre Dublin AUDIO DESCRIBED PERF.

Saturday 7 December Bord Gáis Energy Theatre Dublin

#INORigoletto

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irishnationalopera.ie

BOOKING &

INFORMATION

PARENTING GONE AWRY

1 - 23

FEBRUARY

2025

NATIONAL

TOUR

25 - 31

MAY

2025

GAIETY

THEATRE

Donizetti

The Elixir of Love

J. Strauss

4

JUNE

2025

NATIONAL

OPERA HOUSE

7

JUNE

2025

CORK OPERA

HOUSE

FERGUS SHEIL

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

“Alone, deformed, poor,” is how Rigoletto describes himself. His

beloved wife is dead. He sees himself as being without homeland,

relatives, friends, religion or family. His daughter Gilda is his entire

universe, but he keeps her very existence secret. He will do anything

to protect her from the malevolent forces he experiences in his own

life. At court a rich, powerful and predatory duke, “vile” courtiers,

debauched orgies. On the street, assassins and sex workers.

There are a lot of dangers out there!

Rigoletto’s unconditional love for his daughter is what speaks most

powerfully to me in this opera. Yes. His love is too much. It is controlling, suffocating and,

in the end, deadly. But it’s hard not to feel for him as a tragic figure. Gilda loves her father

back, but she still needs to escape from him, and he has left her ill equipped to negotiate

the complexities of life. Inevitably she makes bad decisions.

Verdi’s Rigoletto is one of my favourite operatic stories. It is a potent combination of familial

love, romantic love, duty, disobedience, betrayal, and the ever-present curse which gave the

opera its original working title, La maledizione.

For tonight’s production we have invited back director Julien Chavaz and set designer Jamie

Vartan from our highly-acclaimed 2022 production of Rossini’s William Tell. They approach

Rigoletto by using elements of the story – the jester’s hat, Rigoletto’s house – to build an

abstract world with these thematic elements as its foundation. The production also draws on

historic references, particularly in Jean-Jacques Delmotte’s Renaissance-inspired costumes.

We have an outstanding cast with three of our leads making their INO debuts. Our Rigoletto,

the imposing American baritone Michael Chioldi, goes on to sing the role for the Metropolitan

Opera, New York, in January. Our Gilda, the infectiously brilliant high-wire soprano Soraya

Mafi (whose heritage is part Irish, part Iranian), makes her debut here in one of her signature

roles. Our Duke, the vocally gleaming Uzbek tenor Bekhzod Davronov, is a hugely exciting

rising star. And radiant Irish mezzo-soprano Niamh O’Sullivan is taking on the role of

Maddalena for the first time.

After its Dublin run, our Rigoletto will be presented by our co-producing partners Santa Fe

Opera in the US and Opera Zuid in the Netherlands in the years ahead.

Enjoy!

05

WAITING FOR

THE FLYING

DUTCHMAN

“The Flying Dutchman is the gateway

drug to Wagner. The opera is short,

the tunes are hummable, and the

drama has great pace. But it’s also

somewhere that Wagner explored

emotional depth, orchestral grandeur

and the consummation of love

through death. It’s an intoxicating mix

and I can’t wait for next March at the

Bord Gáis Energy Theatre.”

FERGUS SHEIL CONDUCTOR

“The Flying Dutchman has it all:

history, mystery, mythology,

adventure, family drama, sorrow,

loss and ambition, all wrapped up

in a tragic love story which provides

Wagner with the framework for his

epic, luscious and ground breaking

score. With an international cast of

outstanding performers alongside

INO’s own sensational orchestra and

chorus, this production promises

to be a unforgettable evening of

storytelling and music, fitting for the

company’s first presentation of an

opera by Wagner.”

RACHAEL HEWER DIRECTOR

Der fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman) Overture.

Manuscript copy in Wagner’s handwriting with notes to his publisher.

“Every INO Season brings new

delights and eagerly anticipated new

productions. I greatly look forward to

their first Wagner opera The Flying

Dutchman,at once an eerie legend and

a great love story. Its stunning score lets

soloists, chorus and orchestra shine.

Both the veteran opera fan and the

opera newcomer will be gripped by the

thrilling drama. I, for one, cannot wait.”

CATHERINE KULLMANN,

MEMBER OF THE INO FLYING DUTCHMAN’S CIRCLE

MARCH 2025

BORD GÁIS ENERGY THEATRE, DUBLIN

SUN 23, TUE 25, THUR 27 & SAT 29 MAR

BOOKING on www.irishnationalopera.ie

A HOME TO CALL OUR OWN

DIEGO FASCIATI

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Just over a year ago, during one of our performances of Puccini’s

La bohème in this theatre, unspeakable violence was unleashed on

the streets of Dublin causing a shutdown of the city centre. After the

performance, many of our singers had to wait in a nearby bar, though

there was a silver lining when they entertained everyone with several

rounds of karaoke.

The recently published Dublin City Centre Taskforce report proposes

the development of the area as a cultural hub. The city centre already

includes the Abbey and Gate Theatres, and for many decades was

home to Radio Éireann and the Feis Ceoil. The Rotunda (today’s Ambassador Theatre at

the north end of O’Connell Street) was a major music venue well into the 19th century

(John Field made his debut there aged nine in 1792) and, on the south side of the Liffey,

the 2,000 seat Theatre Royal in Hawkins Street hosted productions with many of the

greatest opera singers from 1821 onwards. The recommendation to develop infrastructure

for cultural and night-time use is crucial. It would not only jump-start the redevelopment of

the city centre, but help restore its historical cultural role.

How does this relate to Irish National Opera? Our strategic planning has identified an

urgent need for a dedicated rehearsal space. Along with other arts organisations we

struggle to find rehearsal rooms that provide suitable and affordable working conditions.

The Dublin Central Mission, on Lower Abbey Street, just over 50m west of the Abbey

Theatre, functioned as a religious as well as cultural space for over a century. The church

on the ground level is complemented by an assembly hall on the upper level, often used as

a rehearsal space, which was a key venue for the Feis Ceoil before its move to the RDS.

That building is now closed and for sale. The good news is that we are the successful

bidders to purchase it. We are planning to transform it into two large rehearsal spaces and

a public recital hall. This will create a valuable and much-needed resource not just for INO

but for many other arts, community and youth organisations. It will have a transformational

effect in an area at the heart of the Taskforce’s remit.

We need investment from public and private sources and have only a small window of a

few months to raise the funds necessary to purchase and refurbish the building. For more

information, or if you have ideas about the project, or would like to get involved, please do

contact me. I can be reached directly at diego@irishnationalopera.ie.

06

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Opera is more than an art form; it’s a journey that stirs the

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Image: Kabin Crew members performing The Sound of the Northside at Everyman, Cork

Photo: Cathal Noonan

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09

SYNOPSIS

The story takes place in the court of the Duke of Mantua,

a libertine nobleman who pursues numerous romantic

conquests without regard for the suffering he causes. His

jester, Rigoletto, assists him in his intrigues and takes pleasure

in mocking the men betrayed by the Duke, earning the hatred

of many courtiers. Count Monterone, father of one of the

Duke’s victims, places a curse on Rigoletto, which echoes

ominously as a dark omen.

Outside the court, Rigoletto leads a secret life. Though he is

feared and despised for his role as a jester, he is also a tender

and protective father. His daughter, Gilda, lives hidden away

in a secluded neighborhood, as Rigoletto fears she might be

corrupted by the depraved world he frequents. However, the

Duke accidentally discovers Gilda’s whereabouts and, under

a false identity, seduces her. Naive and sheltered, Gilda falls in

love with this man she believes to be honorable.

The nobles, who despise Rigoletto, plan to take revenge on

him. Believing they are abducting his mistress, they kidnap

Gilda and deliver her to the Duke. Rigoletto, devastated by this

revelation, swears to make the Duke pay. He hires Sparafucile,

a hitman, to carry out his revenge. However, Gilda, despite the

betrayal, still loves the Duke, and upon overhearing the murder

plan, decides to sacrifice herself to save him. She takes his

place in the ambush, and Sparafucile kills her instead.

In the final act, Rigoletto receives what he believes to be the

Duke’s body, only to discover with horror that it is Gilda’s.

Monterone’s curse comes true; in trying to protect and avenge

his daughter, he has contributed to her downfall.

Image: Michael Chioldi and Soraya Mafi

in Rigoletto rehearsals

Photography: Ste Murray

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11

DIRECTOR’S

NOTE

Image: Niamh O’Sullivan and Bekhzod Davronov in

Rigoletto rehearsals with Director Julien Chavaz

Photography: Ste Murray

Rigoletto is a gripping tragedy: the story

of a father mourning his daughter, swept

away by power plays, unrestrained desires,

and the missteps of his own love. Verdi

immerses us in an obsessive and tormented

fatherhood, where every note echoes

the pain and powerlessness of the jester

Rigoletto.

In this staging, my focus is on bodies in

motion. For me, the stage is a space where

every gesture, every movement must

express as much as words or music. The

singers, the chorus, become the lines and

shapes from which the drama emerges.

This physicality makes theatre vibrant,

immediate – an art of the “now.”

The music of Rigoletto is mesmerizing,

almost hypnotic, like a trance that

transports us beyond time and space.

Immersive, it envelops us, leading us into a flow where emotions and

rhythms merge. I want the audience to be captured by this energy, swept

into a movement where music and sensations intertwine.

Aesthetically, the idea is not to freeze the past or clumsily force the present

but to recreate a poetic and extraordinary universe. A universe that can

only exist within the theatre walls. Our question was this: What if we drew

textures, motifs, silhouettes, and colours from the masterpieces of the

Italian Renaissance – Titian, Caravaggio, Veronese – and reshaped

them into a world where anything becomes possible? In this tapestrydraped

realm, characters drift like puppets, lost like pawns on an immense

chessboard. They become symbols of the human experience, universal

and deeply resonant, inviting us to connect with them in a profound way.

The theatre is a rare space where emotions are alive, raw, and

immediate. Rigoletto is an opera unlike any other, centreing an outsider in

its leading role. The poignant encounter between this tragic figure and the

magic of the stage gives rise to something singular – a work that captures

the audience’s spirit with a vision both familiar and entirely new.

JULIEN CHAVAZ

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13

THE TRAVAILS

OF TRIBOULET

When 36-year-old Giuseppe Verdi sent a letter to his 39-yearold

librettist Francesco Maria Piave on 28 April 1850, he was

very clear about what he wanted to work on next, an opera

based on an 1832 play by Victor Hugo. He wrote:

I have in mind a subject that would be one of the

greatest creations of the modern theatre if the police

would only allow it. Who knows? They allowed Ernani,

they might even allow us to do this and at least there

are no conspiracies in it.

Have a try! The subject is grand, immense, and

there’s a character in it who is one of the greatest

creations that the theatre of all countries and all times

can boast. The subject is Le Roi s’amuse [The King

Amuses Himself] and the character I’m speaking

about is Triboulet; and if Varesi [the French-born Italian

baritone Felice Varesi (1813–1889) who had created

the title role in Verdi’s Macbeth in 1847] has been

engaged there could be nothing better for him or for

us.

PS As soon as you get this letter put on your skates;

run about the city and find someone of influence to get

us permission to do Le Roi s’amuse. Don’t go to sleep;

give yourself a good shake; do it at once.

A few days later he wrote, “Oh, Le Roi s’amuse is the greatest

subject and perhaps the greatest drama of modern times.

Triboulet is a creation worthy of Shakespeare!!”

But why did Verdi even mention the police? Because Hugo’s

Le Roi s’amuse, which was based on the life of King Francis I

of France (1515–47) and premiered in Paris on 22 November

1832, was banned the next morning and wouldn’t be seen again in the French capital for

another 50 years.

Hugo, however, wouldn’t let his work go to waste and got it into print before the month was out.

He wrote a preface pressing the case for freedom from censorship and arguing against the

charge that the play was immoral. What follows is part of his preface, with just a single change.

The names of the characters in the play are replaced by their names in the opera.

The play is immoral? Do you think so? Is it the subject? Rigoletto is deformed, Rigoletto

is unhealthy, Rigoletto is a court buffoon – a threefold misery which makes him evil.

Rigoletto hates the Duke because he is a Duke, the nobles because they are nobles,

and he hates ordinary men because they do not have humps on their backs. His only

pastime is to set the nobles unceasingly against the Duke, crushing the weaker by

the stronger. He depraves the Duke, corrupts and stultifies him; he encourages him

in tyranny, ignorance and vice. He lures him to the families of gentlemen, pointing

out the wife to seduce, the sister of carry off, the daughter to dishonour. In the hands

of Rigoletto the Duke is but an all-powerful puppet which ruins the lives of those in

the midst of whom the buffoon sets him to play. One day, in the midst of a festival, at

the moment when Rigoletto is urging the Duke to carry off the wife of Count Ceprano,

Monterone makes his way into the royal presence, and in a loud voice reproaches the

Duke for the dishonour of his daughter. This father, from whom the Duke has taken his

daughter, is jeered at and insulted by Rigoletto. Then the father puts out his hand and

curses Rigoletto. It is from this scene that the whole play develops. The real subject of

the drama is the curse of Monterone. Listen. You are in the second act. On whom has

this curse fallen? On Rigoletto as the Duke’s fool? No. It has fallen on Rigoletto as a man,

a father who has a heart and has a daughter. Rigoletto has a daughter – everything is

expressed in that. Rigoletto has but his daughter in the world, and he hides her from

all eyes in a solitary house in a deserted quarter. The more he spreads the contagion of

debauchery and vice in the town, the more he seeks to isolate and immure his daughter.

He brings up his child in faith, innocence and modesty. His greatest fear is that she may

fall into evil, for he knows, being himself wicked, all the wretchedness that is endured

by evildoers. Well, now! The old man’s malediction will reach Rigoletto through the only

14

Image: Giuseppe Verdi, photographed in the

late 1860s by Charles Reutlinger (1816–81)

15

being in the world whom he loves, his daughter. This same Duke whom Rigoletto urges

to pitiless vice will be the ravisher of Rigoletto’s daughter. The buffoon will be struck by

Providence precisely in the same manner as was Monterone.

Then once his daughter has been seduced and ravished, he lays a trap for the Duke

through which to avenge her; but it is she that falls into it. Thus Rigoletto has two pupils,

the Duke and his daughter – the Duke, whom he has trained to vice, his daughter,

whom he has reared for virtue. One destroys the other. He intends Countess Ceprano

to be carried off for the Duke; it is his daughter who is trapped. He wishes to kill the

Duke, and so avenge his child; it is his daughter whom he slays. Punishment does not

stop halfway; the malediction of Monterone as a father is fulfilled on the father of Gilda.

Undoubtedly it is not for us to decide if this is a dramatic idea, but certainly it is a moral

one. The foundation of one of the author’s other works is fatality. The foundation of this

one is Providence.

Piave did put his skates on, yet it was anything but straightforward for him to deliver on Verdi’s

instructions. In November the composer cautioned his librettist:

Mind you: do not let yourself be induced to make modifications that would lead to

alterations of the characters, the subject, the situations. If it’s a matter of words, you

can agree. If it’s a matter also of changing the scene where Francesco [the Duke] uses

the key to enter the bedroom of Bianca [Gilda], you can also do it. In fact (as I wrote to

you in my last) I believe we would be well-advised to find something better on our own.

But be sure you leave intact the scene where Francesco goes to the house of Saltabadil

[Sparafucile]. Without this, the drama no longer exists. You must also leave in the

business of the sack [with Gilda’s dead body]. This cannot matter to the Police, for it’s

not their job to think about the dramatic effect.

At the end of the month the Venetian authorities were still objecting to a work they described

as “repulsively immoral and obscenely vulgar.” Piave even went against Verdi’s wishes and

proposed a version in which Rigoletto was not a hunchback and Gilda did not die in a sack.

It was not until the end of December 1850 that the new shape of the work was agreed. The

memorandum had six stipulations:

1. The action will be transferred from the Court of France to that of one of the

independent Dukes of Burgundy, Normandy, or one of the small absolute princes of

the Italian states, and probably to the Court of Pier Luigi Farnese and to the period

that will be best to assign there for the decorum and success of the scene.

2. The original types of the characters of Victor Hugo from the drama Le Roi s’amuse

will be preserved, changing the names of the characters according to the situation

and period that will be chosen.

3. The scene in which Francesco [the Duke] declared his decision to take advantage of

the key he had in his possession to enter the room of the kidnapped Bianca [Gilda]

will be completely avoided. And this by substituting another scene, which preserves

the necessary decency, without detracting from the interest of the drama.

4. At the rendezvous in Magellona’s [Maddalena’s] tavern, the King or Duke will be

invited by a deception of the character who will replace Triboletto [this makes the

sequence of names clear, Triboulet became Triboletto, Triboletto became Rigoletto;

there was also an 1835 vaudeville, Rigoletti, ou Le Dernier des fous, about a duke and

his jester]

5. Upon the appearance of the sack containing the body of Triboletto’s daughter,

Maestro Verdi reserves the right to make any changes deemed necessary for

practical reasons.

6. The above changes, requiring time beyond that which has passed up to now, Maestro

Verdi declares that he cannot perform his new opera before February 28 or March 1.

The first performance was in fact given at the Teatro la Fenice on 11 March 1851.

Rigoletto was a hit with the public but the response from music critics was mixed, with credit

for the success given to the singers rather than the composer. After the London premiere in

1853, even the generally favourable Morning Chronicle explained that “somehow or other,

Verdi had in a great measure ceased to be Verdi... You might almost imagine, indeed, that you

16

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Image: LIthograph of a scene from Act III of Verdi’s Rigoletto, showing

singers from the London premiere in 1853. Left to right: Giorgio

Ronconi (Rigoletto), Angiolina Bosio (Gilda), Constance Nantier-Didiée

(Maddalena) and Giovanni Mario (Duke of Mantua). All save Mario

performed in the Irish premiere at the Theatre Royal in Dublin in 1857,

when the Duke was sung by Pietro Neri-Baraldi.

was Angiolina Bosio (1830–59) who, at the time of her death, aged 28 in St Petersburg, had

already become a yardstick against which other singers were being assessed. The Maddalena,

Constance Nantier Didiée (1831–67), would go on to create the role of Preziosilla in Verdi’s La

forza del destino in St Petersburg in 1862.

were listening to Auber, or Hérold, or Adolphe Adam.” The Times’s view was that “there is very

little interest in the music,” and the writer looked down his nose at Italy, where “the foibles and

menus plaisirs of kings are not allowed to be exhibited on the stage,” tacitly ignoring the fact

that other adjustments had to be made to a text acceptable in Italy to make it acceptable to

the authorities in Victorian Britain. Of course, no one knew yet that the intervention of a censor

would cause a non-hunchback version to be given under the title Lionello in Naples in 1856.

In 1857, when the work was first produced in Dublin, the Freeman’s Journal swatted away the

censorship issues by asserting that, “The plot of the whole piece is nothing more nor less than

an Italianised version of the old and well known French vaudeville of Francis the First, or Le

Roi s’amuse, which, under the title of the Court Fool, has been played a thousand times in the

theatres of London and Dublin.”

But the Journal did distance itself from much of the music (“the waste of rough recitative and

gloomy taste”), as did the Dublin Evening Mail, which noted “evidence of this composer’s taste

for revolting subjects,” and suggested “A more unlovely theme to be illustrated by the loveliest

of the arts could scarcely be found in the whole range of the continental drama”.

Both papers, however, were unstinting in their praise of the singers. Small wonder. The

Rigoletto, Giorgio Ronconi (1810–90), had created the title role in Verdi’s Nabucco as well

as as string of Donizetti roles: Cardenio in Il furioso all’isola di San Domingo, the title role in

Torquato Tasso, Enrico in II campanello di notte, Nello della Pietra in Pia de’ Tolomei, Corrado

Waldorf in Maria de Rudenz, Don Pedro in Maria Padilla, and Enrico in Maria di Rohan. The Gilda

In the middle of August 1857 a number Irish of newspapers carried a short piece stating that

“Signor Verdi is said to have contracted to write an opera for St Petersburg in the Handel

Centenary year of 1859, for which he is to receive only upwards of £3,500 of English Money!”

The Bank of England’s inflation calculator suggests that £3,500 in 1857 is the equivalent of

£332,582 in 2024. Verdi’s contract for the work in question, La forza del destino, was in fact for

60,000 gold francs.

Historic costs of living are notoriously tricky to make sense of. But you can look at these sums of

money in another way. For a London bricklayer in the early 1860s to have earned £3,500 would

have taken over 57 years (working 40 hour weeks with no holidays), and for a mere labourer

more than 95 years.

Piave, who would write 12 librettos in all for Verdi, would also go on provide the libretto for Irish

composer Michael William Balfe’s Pittore e Duca (Painter and Duke), which was first performed

in Trieste on 21 November 1854. Balfe’s daughter Victoire (1837–71) sang the title role in

Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor at the Theatre Royal in Dublin on the night before the Irish

premiere of Rigoletto, and was Amina in Bellini’s Sonnambula the night after it. And don’t think

the world has yet forgotten about the decadent world of Francis I. Irish actor Colm Meaney plays

that king in season one of the television series The Serpent Queen, which is based on the life of

Catherine de’ Medici.

And, for all trivia lovers, the then 15-year-old Bosio sang in a Mattinata Musicale at the home

of Verdi’s publisher, Giovanni Ricordi, with Limerick soprano Catherine Hayes (1818–61) in

September 1845. And the Dublin Sparafucile, Joseph Tagliafico (1821–1900), went on to have

one of his compositions mentioned unflatteringly by Marcel Proust in Swann’s Way.

BY MICHAEL DERVAN

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19

BEING SORAYA MAFI

WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER FROM THE

FIRST OPERA YOU WENT TO?

That’s an interesting question. I saw a

semi-staged Verdi Falstaff in concert at the

Bridgewater Hall in Manchester. But the first

proper opera that I truly remember sitting

through and enjoying was Janáček’s The

Cunning Little Vixen. It was Opera North and

they were at The Lowry on tour. They’d done

a workshop at my school. We had a really

passionate head of music who had encouraged

both my older sister and myself to pursue our

musical interests and talents. My mum is from

Co. Mayo and there was a lot of folk music

and singing and playing of instruments in the

household and also at church, but no real

opera. But my mum and dad listened to it. My

grandfather used to listen to Gigli on vinyl and

my mum introduced my dad to recordings of

Pavarotti. It was when the three tenors were

singing at football matches, so we listened to it

a lot. But I didn’t really know much about it and

I just thought, gosh, this is really interesting. I

thought it was always about big heartbreaks

and really intense tuberculosis. But with The

Cunning Little Vixen it was like, all right, she’s a

really sassy feminist character. And I loved how

it bridged between the animal world and the

real world, and made parallels. I just thought,

wow, I think I would really like to play that role.

It was a really physical performance and

funnily enough, the lady who played Vixen

then, Janice Kelly, became my teacher for

my masters. We didn’t realise for years that

she didn’t know that that was the opera that

got me into it, and I didn’t realise she played

Vixen. I had just thought, I would love to do

that. Because I’d danced a lot and I loved

performing and singing and I loved musical

theatre. Real music theatre was how they

presented The Cunning Little Vixen. That was

really my true first experience of watching and

engaging with opera. I think I was about 15.

WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER FROM THE

FIRST OPERA YOU SANG IN?

I actually sang in an opera before then, I think

I was about 13. We did The Little Sweep from

Britten’s Let’s Make an Opera at school. I

think I was the older sister kind of character

in it, who has a very pretty little song. My first

professional role debut was jumping in on a

production at Grange Park Opera Festival. I

was in my first year postgraduate at the Royal

College. Grange Park were doing Poulenc’s

Dialogues of the Carmelites and the artistic

director, Wasfi Kani, came to watch a student

show we did. It was based on Britten’s Les

Illuminations and I was playing a French song

teacher. She got in touch and said “I came

to see the show. Our Sœur Constance can

no longer fulfil the contract. Can you sing the

first and final scenes for me in a few days

time. I’ll send you the score.” So I did and

she said, “Right. Okay. I want to book you.

Rehearsals start in a month.” I just went to

the office at college and said, “I’ve just booked

a professional contract. Can I have summer

term off?” And they said “Yeah. Sure. That’s

what we’re training you for. Go and do it.” So

then she hired me again and I kind of got an

agent in the run-up to that. It just started

snowballing, really, and I never looked back.

I’ve always loved being on stage. That’s where

I feel at home, because I danced from the age

of two and, literally, I’m more comfortable on

stage than probably in my living room or in

my kitchen. It’s like home for me.

WHAT WAS THE BEST OPERA-RELATED

ADVICE YOU EVER GOT?

That’s an interesting one. I think the best opera

related advice was that it’s all about the text.

WHAT IS THE MOST ANNOYING

MISCONCEPTION ABOUT OPERA?

I find it frustrating, well...not frustrating, but

a bit perplexing, when people say, “Here

comes the person with the big voice.”

Because I think there’s such a wide spectrum

16

Image: Soraya Mafi

Photography: Raphaelle Photography

21

Image: Soraya Mafi

Photography: Danmacsnaps

of voices and sounds within opera. People

think, “Oh, if I hear a singer they’re gonna

have a big vibrato and it’s going to be very

bellowy sounding.” And actually there’s

such a vast array of colours in one voice let

alone all the voices that sing in opera. One

coloratura soprano is different to another

coloratura soprano. One basso profondo

is different to another. I sometimes find it

a little frustrating if I’m introduced as the

little girl with a big voice. Because there’s a

difference between having a big voice and

having a voice that projects in a theatre.

You can hear someone in a room and you

think “Wow! What a large sound.” And in

the theatre you cannot hear them. Whereas

with someone else you first think “Oh, you

know, it seems quite contained.” And then

they go into the theatre, and you’re like,

“Wow, oh my gosh. They are gliding over

everybody else. The text is so present there,

and the persona is so present as well.” I think

the words big voice concern me. I think it’s

important for young singers, and for people

outside the industry, to understand that it’s a

whole toolbox. A whole variety of colours that

are at people’s disposal. But, ultimately you

know, opera is about telling stories with the

beautiful human voice and all of its colours.

That’s what I’m about.

WHAT MOMENT DO YOU MOST LOOK

FORWARD TO WHEN YOU GO TO A

PERFORMANCE OF RIGOLETTO?

I find it interesting to see what focus the

director has chosen to take, because there’s

a number of themes you could flush out in

Rigoletto. The previous two productions I’ve

done have been with female directors. So a

huge point of conversation has been how do

we deal with Gilda essentially forgiving and

saying she still loves the Duke after the way he

has treated her. But in the previous the Welsh

National Opera production and also this INO

production, I think there’s also a huge focus on

how a certain part of society treats those below

them. That’s something I always find interesting

with this piece. It’s something that transcends

age and time. There will always be people with

power and people without it. How do we treat

them? And what what are the consequences if

we treat those with less power than us like dirt?

How does that affect their lives? And how

does it impact those around them?

WHAT’S THE MOST CHALLENGING

ASPECT OF PERFORMING GILDA?

The first time I played her it was literally just

getting to the end and being able to sing

it, because what happens to her is just so

horrible. So I had to take myself out of her

emotional journey and out of Rigoletto’s, and

just kind of sing it beautifully and with all the

proper facility. Then it was really nice to return

to the role a few years later and see this is all

within me and now I can start investing more

into her. It’s always a balance as a singer

finding out about how much you can give of

yourself. There are moments, like at the end

when she is dying, where Verdi gives you this

stunningly beautiful lyrical line. But you’ve just

been killed and dragged around in a body bag,

and your father’s shaking you trying to get

you awake. And you’re trying to sustain this

beautiful lyrical line. That’s very difficult.

IF YOU COULD CHANGE TWO THINGS

ABOUT THE WORLD OF OPERA...?

I would love for a wider audience to be aware

of how much repertoire there is. And also how

you can see a production of Rigoletto by one

director, one creative team and one cast, and

it can be completely different to another. So

someone may go to watch Bizet’s Carmen and

it might be period style with corsets and they go,

“Oh gosh. I wasn’t expecting this. I like it a bit

more edgy, a bit more punk. This isn’t an opera

for me.” And, actually, if you find a director you

enjoy or a designer you like or a singer that you

really connect with, then try again. Keep trying

and you’ll find something that you really love.

And I’d love to see more singing and classical

music in schools. I discovered so much about

myself through singing and music. It was a huge

part of my education. There is nowhere near

enough art and music in school. I see it with my

kids every day. They have no bias when they’re

young. If anything it’s live and classical music

that like inspires them the most.

IF YOU WEREN’T A SINGER, WHAT

MIGHT YOU HAVE BECOME?

I would have become a dancer, but I couldn’t

because of my back. So if I hadn’t been a dancer

either... I think I would have loved to have owned

a children’s library. I would have loved to have

posted events for them, to have had relationships

with the community and seen children grow. I

think I would have really loved that.

IN CONVERSATION WITH MICHAEL DERVAN

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CAST

Rigoletto Michael Chioldi Baritone

Gilda Soraya Mafi Soprano

Duke of Mantua Bekhzod Davronov Tenor

Sparafucile Julian Close Bass

Maddalena Niamh O’Sullivan Mezzo-soprano

Count Monterone Phillip Rhodes Baritone

Matteo Borsa Andrew Masterson Tenor

Marullo Seán Boylan Baritone

Count Ceprano David Howes Bass-baritone

Giovanna Leanne Fitzgerald Mezzo-soprano

Countess Ceprano Sarah Luttrell Mezzo-soprano

A Court Usher Matthew Mannion Bass-baritone

A Page Caroline Behan Soprano

CREATIVE TEAM

Conductor

Director

Set Designer

Costume Designer

Lighting Designer

Movement Director

Chorus Director

Répétiteur

Assistant Conductor

Assistant Director

Assistant Director

Language Coach

Fergus Sheil

Julien Chavaz

Jamie Vartan

Jean-Jacques Delmotte

Rick Fisher

Nicole Morel

Sinéad Hayes

Richard McGrath

Peter Joyce

Alixe Durand Saint Guillain

Grace Morgan

Annalisa Monticelli

PARTICIPATING INO STUDIO MEMBERS

Maddalena COVER Leanne Fitzgerald Mezzo-soprano

Assistant Director

Grace Morgan

Assistant Conductor

Peter Joyce

IRISH NATIONAL OPERA CHORUS

Walk-on Roles

Deirdre Higgins

Sarah Kilcoyne

Megan O’Neill

Niamh St John

Tenors

David Corr

Ben Escorcio

Luke Horner

Keith Kearns

Cathal McCabe

James McCreanor

Patrick McGinley

Oisín Ó Dálaigh

William Pearson

Conor Prendiville

Seán Tester

Jacek Wislocki

Basses

Adam Cahill

William Costello

Michael Ferguson

Meilir Jones

David Kennedy

William Kyle

Boyu Liu

Maksym Lozovyi

Matthew Mannion

Gerry Noonan

Dylan Rooney

Luke Stanley

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IRISH NATIONAL OPERA ORCHESTRA

PRODUCTION TEAM

First Volins

Sarah Sew LEADER

David O’Doherty

Anita Vedres

Jennifer Murphy

Mollie Wrafter

Maria Ryan

Jacqueline Lambart

Inana Garis

Yuzhe Qiu

Erin Hennessey

Second Violins

Larissa O’Grady

Aoife Dowdall

Cillian Ó Breacháin

Christine Kenny

Justyna Dabek

Sarah Perricone

Rachel Du

Andrew Sheeran

Viola

Andreea Banciu

Giammaria Tesi

Abi Hammett

Martha Campbell

Aoise O’Dwyer

Karen Dervan

Cello

David Edmonds

Yseult Cooper-Stockdale

Paul Grennan

Paula Hughes

Caitríona Finnegan

Jonathan Few

Double Bass

Dominic Dudley

Maeve Sheil

Paul Stephens

Alex Felle

Flute

Lina Andonovska

Flute/Piccolo

Susan Doyle

Oboe

Aoife McCambridge

Oboe/Cor Anglais

Rebecca Halliday

Clarinet

Conor Sheil

Suzanne Forde

Bassoon

Sinéad Frost

Cliona Warren

Horn

Hannah Miller

Louise Sullivan

Dewi Jones

Peter Mullen

Trumpet

William Palmer

Glen Carr

Trombone

Ross Lyness

Colm O’Hara

Bass Trombone

Paul Frost

Cimbasso

Stuart Beard

Timpani

Noel Eccles

Percussion

Brian Dungan

Richard O’Donnell

Kevin Corcoran

OFF STAGE BAND

Piccolo

Meadhbh O’Rourke

E flat Clarinet

Seamus Wylie

Clarinet

Cathal Killeen

Horn

Ian Dakin

Caoime Glavin

Javier Fernandez

Trumpet

Erick Castillo Mora

Trombone

Casey Trowel

Percussion

Kevin Corcoran

Production Manager

Peter Jordan

Michael Lonergan

Company Stage Manager

Paula Tierney

Stage Manager

Anne Kyle

Assistant Stage Manager

Rachel Ellen Bollard

Ross Smith

Technical Crew

Abraham Allen

Peter Boyle

Conor Courtney

Vincent Doherty

Tom Knight

Joey Maguire

Pawel Nierowaj

Martin Wallace

Chief LX

Donal McNinch

LX Programmer

Eoin McNinch

LX Crew

June González Iriarte

Paul Hyland

Set & Prop Construction

TPS

Andrew Clancy

Props

Ian Thompson

Festoon

Eventco

Cloths

Stagetextiel

Wall Printing

Horizon Digital Print

Scenic Artist

Sandra Butler

Wigs, Hair & Makeup Supervisor

Carole Dunne

Wigs, Hair & Makeup Assistants

Tee Elliott

Sharon Hersee

Rebecca Wise

Costume Makers

COSTUME DEPARTMENT OPERA ZUID

Leo van den Boorn

Ben van Buuren

Michelle Cornelissen

Anny Krutzen

Marina Minguez Carrasco

John Meertens

Costume Supervisor

Sinéad Lawlor

Costume Assistant

Maija Koppinen

Costume Dressers

Maeve Smyth

Alison Meehan

Costume Technicians

Veronika Romanova

Caroline Butler

Pauline McCaul

Breakdown & Dye Artist

Oona MacFarland

Costume Maintenance

Hanna Pulkinnen

Ben Hackett

Lir Intern

Megan Conlon

Surtitle Operator

Susan Brodigan

Lighting Provider

White Light

Production Photography

Patrick Redmond

Rehearsal Photography

Ste Murray

Behind the scenes video

Charlie Joe Doherty

Graphic Design

Detail

Promotional video

Gansee Films

Transport

Trevor Price

26 27

BIOGRAPHIES

FERGUS SHEIL

CONDUCTOR

JULIEN CHAVAZ

DIRECTOR

JAMIE VARTAN

SET DESIGNER

JEAN-JACQUES DELMOTTE

COSTUME DESIGNER

Fergus is the founding artistic

director of Irish National Opera.

He has conducted a wide-ranging

repertoire of over 50 different

operas live, for recordings, and on

film. Highlights include Richard

Strauss’s Salome, Der Rosenkavalier and Elektra,

Rossini’s William Tell and La Cenerentola, Brian

Irvine and Netia Jones’s Least Like The Other,

half of 20 Shots of Opera, and Beethoven’s Fidelio

(Irish National Opera). He has also conducted

Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde, John Adams’s Nixon in

China, Rossini’s The Barber of Seville (Wide Open

Opera), Mozart’s Don Giovanni and the first modern

performance and recording of Robert O’Dwyer’s Irishlanguage

opera, Eithne (Opera Theatre Company).

Abroad he has conducted Least Like The Other in the

Linbury Theatre at the Royal Opera House, London,

and William Tell for Nouvel Opéra Fribourg, and has

also conducted for Scottish Opera and Welsh National

Opera. At home he has conducted the National

Symphony Orchestra, the RTÉ Concert Orchestra,

the Ulster Orchestra, and the Irish Chamber

Orchestra. With the State Choir Latvija he gave the

world premiere of Arvo Pärt’s The Deer’s Cry and

has also conducted the BBC Singers. He has fulfilled

engagements in the USA, Canada, South Africa,

Australia, the UK, France, Netherlands, Denmark,

Sweden, Malta and Estonia. Before founding INO

he led both Wide Open Opera and Opera Theatre

Company. Since 2011 he has been responsible for

the production of over seventy different operas,

which have been seen around Ireland and in London,

Edinburgh, New York, Amsterdam and Luxembourg.

Swiss director Julien Chavaz is

known for his work in contemporary

opera and music theatre, and

directed Rossini’s William Tell for

Irish National Opera in 2022. In

2018 Chavaz’s Paris production

of Shostakovich’s Moscow, Cheryomushki was

shortlisted as Best Show of the Year by Le Monde. He

is General Director of Theater Magdeburg, and was

Artistic Director of Nouvel Opéra Fribourg from 2018–

2022. Projects in 2024–25 include new productions

of Bizet’s Carmen and Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro

in Magdeburg, Gerald Barry’s Alice’s Adventures

Underground at Grand Théâtre de Genève, as well as

a revival of Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin in Nancy.

Other recent work includes Korngold’s Die tote Stadt

(Korea National Opera), Peter Eötvös’s Der Goldene

Drache (Grand Théatre de Genève), Thomas Adès’s

Powder Her Face, Gerald Barry’s The Importance of

Being Earnest (Théâtre de l’Athénée Paris), Eugene

Onegin (Teatro Massimo Palermo), Rossini’s Il

barbiere di Siviglia (Nouvel Opéra Fribourg), Gounod’s

Roméo et Juliette (Opera Zuid, Maastricht), Handel’s

Acis and Galatea (Het Nationale Theater, The Hague

and De Kleine Komedie, Amsterdam) and Marius Felix

Lange’s Snow White. Chavaz directed a fully-staged

version of Buxtehude’s Membra Jesu nostri in the

music theatre production Teenage Bodies (London,

Zurich). His chamber opera Sholololo! was shortlisted

at Festival Belluard Bollwerk International. Other

projects have been presented at Arcola Theater

(London), Opera Bolzano, Rotterdamse Schouwburg,

Rotterdam, Comédie de Genève, and Tête à Tête

Festival, London.

Designs for opera include Donnacha

Dennehy and Enda Walsh’s The First

Child, The Second Violinist and The

Last Hotel (Landmark Productions/

Irish National Opera); Mozart’s Così

fan tutte, Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle,

Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel (INO) and Rossini’s

William Tell (INO and Nouvel Opéra Fribourg); Rossini’s Il

barbiere di Siviglia (Wide Open Opera); Strauss’s Ariadne

auf Naxos, Tchaikovsky’s The Queen of Spades (Teatro

alla Scala, Milan); Verdi’s La traviata (Malmö Opera);

Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin (Opéra national du Rhin,

Strasbourg); Anthony Bolton’s The Life & Death of

Alexander Litvinenko, Puccini’s La bohème (Grange Park

Opera); Bizet’s Carmen (Teatro Nacional de San Carlos,

Lisbon, Teatro Regio, Turin and Teatro Lirico di Cagliari);

Verdi’s Aida (Teatro Lirico di Cagliari); Ariadne auf

Naxos (Salzburger Festspiele); Jake Heggie’s Dead Man

Walking (Oldenburgisches Staatstheater, Oldenburg);

Delius’s A Village Romeo and Juliet (Teatro Lirico di

Cagliari & Wexford Festival Opera, winner Best Set

Design, Irish Times Theatre Awards); Puccini’s Manon

Lescaut (Opera Bilbao and Palau de les Arts, Valencia);

Paul Abraham’s Die Blume von Hawaii (Theater

Magdeburg). Designs for theatre include Krapp’s Last

Tape (Landmark Productions and Project Arts Centre),

Audrey or Sorrow (Abbey Theatre), Medicine, Woyzeck

in Winter, Arlington, Ballyturk and Misterman, winner

Best Set Design, Irish Times Theatre Awards (Landmark

Productions/Galway International Arts Festival); Happy

Days (Olympia/Landmark Productions); Grief is the

Thing with Feathers (Complicité/Wayward Productions/

Landmark Productions/Galway International Arts

Festival). Film design includes The Last Hotel (Landmark

Productions and Wide Open Opera) on Sky Arts.

Jean-Jacques Delmotte designs

costumes for both theatre and

opera, his work taking him to all

the world’s leading houses. Born in

Paris, he studied architecture at the

École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, and

fashion at École de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture

Parisienne. He worked initially designing costumes

for theatre and contemporary dance, subsequently

expanding into opera. New productions in 2024–25

include Verdi’s Macbeth for TOBS Stadttheater Biel

with Yves Lenoir. Recent projects include Donizetti’s

Don Pasquale for Opéra national de Lorraine with

Timothy Sheader, and Korngold’s Die Tote Stadt

for Korea National Opera with Julien Chavaz. Other

recent work with Lenoir includes Verdi’s Nabucco and

Bellini’sICapuleti ed i Montecchi (TOBS Stadttheater

Biel), Verdi’s Giovanna d’Arco (TOBS Stadttheater

Biel/Opéra de Tours) and Janáček’s Jenůfa (Opéra de

Dijon). Delmotte enjoys a close collaboration with

director Laurent Pelly, co-designing costumes for

a large catalogue of new productions. Their recent

work together includes Wagner’s Die Meistersinger

von Nürnberg at Teatro Real Madrid and Royal Danish

Opera (Copenhagen), Rossini’s Il Turco in Italia at

Teatro Real Madrid and Opéra de Lyon, Tchaikovsky’s

Eugene Onegin at La Monnaie/De Munt (Brussels),

Offenbach’s La Périchole at Théâtre des Champs-

Elysées (Paris), Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream

at Opéra de Lille and Poulenc’s La Voix Humaine/Les

Mamelles de Tirésias at Glyndebourne. In addition,

Delmotte has designed costumes for Berlioz’s

Benvenuto Cellini, Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte and

Rameau’s Les Indes Galantes (director Laura Scozzi),

for Mozart’s Idomeneo (director Christoph Gayral), and

for Molière’s Le Misanthrope at La Cigale, Paris.

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BIOGRAPHIES

RICK FISHER

LIGHTING DESIGNER

NICOLE MOREL

MOVEMENT DIRECTOR

SINÉAD HAYES

CHORUS DIRECTOR

RICHARD MCGRATH

RÉPÉTITEUR

Originally from Philadelphia, Rick

Fisher has been based in London

for over 40 years. Opera includes:

27 operas for Santa Fe Opera

over 15 seasons; Meyerbeer’s

Le prophète, Strauss’s The Silent

Woman (Bard Summerscape, USA); Bizet’s Carmen

(Opera North); Wasserman’s Man of La Mancha

(English National Opera); Verdi’s La traviata (Royal

Opera House, Muscat, Oman); Verdi’s Don Carlos

(LA Opera); Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd (Houston

Grand Opera, San Francisco Opera); Verdi’s Falstaff,

Strauss’s Salome (Saito Kinen Festival, Japan);

Rachel Portman’s The Little Prince (New York City

Opera, Houston Grand Opera); Prokofiev’s The Fiery

Angel, Puccini’s Turandot (Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow);

Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Teatro La

Fenice, Venice); Tchaikovsky’s The Tsarina’s Slippers,

Berg’s Wozzeck (Royal Opera House, London) and

numerous semi-staged operas with Sir John Eliot

Gardiner. Theatre work includes: Middle (National

Theatre), The Audience (Broadway and West End),

Billy Elliot and An Inspector Calls (West End, Broadway

and internationally); Jerry Springer The Opera

(National Theatre/West End). Awards include: 1998,

1994 Olivier Award Winner for Best Lighting Design;

and two Tony Awards, for An Inspector Calls and Billy

Elliot (Broadway). Rick is a Fellow of the Association

for Lighting Production and Design.

Nicole Morel is a Swiss

choreographer and director, and

was choreographer in Rossini’s

William Tell for Irish National Opera.

She is a graduate of the Hamburg

Ballet School (2003) and holds a

Certificate of Advanced Studies in Dramaturgy and

Text Performance from the University of Lausanne

and Manufacture Haute École des Arts de la Scène

(2022). Her professional career began as a dancer

in Madrid in 2003, at Compañía Nacional de Danza

2, under the direction of Nacho Duato and Tony

Fabre. She continued as a soloist at ballettmainz

(Mainz) and then at Ballett am Rhein Düsseldorf and

Duisburg under the direction of Martin Schläpfer.

Strengthened by an international career and in

search of other artistic landscapes, she founded the

Antipode company in 2014 in Fribourg, Switzerland.

Her creations have been presented throughout

Switzerland and internationally across Germany,

Czech Republic, Australia, Brazil and Colombia.

From 2019 to 2022, Nicole was awarded the YAA!

– Young Associated Artist program – in partnership

with Théâtre Equilibre, Nuithonie, Fribourg and Pro

Helvetia, as part of the Swiss Arts Council. Since

2017, she has collaborated on dozens of opera and

musical theatre productions, as choreographer and

director, often in collaboration with director Julien

Chavaz, most recently in Paul Abraham’s Die Blume

von Hawaii (Theater Magdeburg). Nicole is also an

active board member across multiple organisations

including Coopérative la Maison des Artistes, Studio

Danse +, BURO and Action-Danse Fribourg, to

develop and improve conditions for professional

dance artists.

Irish conductor Sinead Hayes is

equally at home working with choir,

orchestra and opera. For Irish

National Opera Sinéad conducted

Mozart’s The Opera Director

(2019). She has also conducted

Weill’s The Threepenny Opera, Sondheim’s Sweeney

Todd and Greg Caffrey’s The Chronic Identity Crisis

of Pamplemousse for NI Opera, and Raymond

Deane’s Vagabones for Opera Collective Ireland and

Crash Ensemble, as well as the National Symphony

Orchestra and RTÉ Concert Orchestra. Sinéad

made her Berlin Philharmonie debut playing Irish

fiddle in the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra’s family

concerts and performing alongside members of the

orchestra. She was appointed INO Studio Conductor

for the 2018/2019 season, and was an assistant

conductor and chorus director for INO productions,

as well as conducting showcase events with the INO

Studio artists. She studied violin at the Royal Irish

Academy of Music, graduated with a BMus in violin

and composition from City University, London, and

completed her MMus in orchestral conducting at the

Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, winning

the Mortimer Furber conducting prize. She is currently

in her fifth season as conductor of Belfast’s Hard

Rain Soloist Ensemble, with which she has premiered

works by Irish and international composers.

Richard studied at Maynooth

University, the Royal Irish Academy

of Music, and the Guildhall School

of Music and Drama, London. He

was a trainee répétiteur at English

National Opera and since then he

has worked with companies including Irish National

Opera, NI Opera, Wide Open Opera, Opera Theatre

Company, and Lyric Opera Productions. Previous

productions with these companies include Verdi’s

La traviata (INO, ENO and Lyric Opera Productions),

Puccini’s La bohème (INO, Opera Theatre Company,

ENO and Lyric Opera Productions), Berlioz’s

Beatrice & Benedict, Gounod’s Faust, Strauss’s Der

Rosenkavalier, Donizetti’s Don Pasquale, Bartók’s

Bluebeard’s Castle, Mozart’s The Magic Flute, Gerald

Barry’s Alice’s Adventures Under Ground (INO),

Donnacha Dennehy and Enda Walsh’s The First Child

and The Second Violinist (Landmark Productions/

INO), Beethoven’s Fidelio, Puccini’s Madama Butterfly

and Bizet’s Carmen (Lyric Opera Productions),

Rossini’s The Barber of Seville (Lyric Opera

Productions, Wide Open Opera and ENO), Donnacha

Dennehy and Enda Walsh’s The Last Hotel (Landmark

Productions/Wide Open Opera), Verdi’s Rigoletto

(Opera Theatre Company), Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore

(Opera Theatre Company and NI Opera) and John

Adams’s Nixon in China (Wide Open Opera). Richard

is a répétiteur in the vocal department at the TU

Dublin Conservatoire and a coach for the INO Studio.

30

31

BIOGRAPHIES

PETER JOYCE

ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR

ALIXE DURAND SAINT GUILLAIN

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR

GRACE MORGAN

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR

MICHAEL CHIOLDI

BARITONE

RIGOLETTO

After his initial musical studies in

Ireland Peter Joyce went on to study

conducting and composition at the

renowned University of Music and

Performing Arts Vienna from which

he graduated with honours in June

2024. Winner of the 1st Prize and Orchestra Prize of

the 2023 Feis Ceoil Conducting Competition, Peter is

currently a member of the INO Studio. He has worked

in symphonic, musical theatre, opera and choral

settings including with the ORF Radio Symphony

Orchestra Vienna, the Wiener Symphoniker

(Vienna), the Sofia National Philharmonic Orchestra

(Bulgaria), the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, Szolnok

Symphony Orchestra (Hungary), Podlasie Opera

and Philharmonic (Poland), Max Brand Ensemble

(Vienna), Ensemble Ars Nova (Poitiers) and the

Webern Chamber Choir (Vienna), in concert halls

including the Golden Hall of the Vienna Musikverein,

the Vienna Konzerthaus and the National Concert

Hall, Dublin. Peter is the founder and conductor of the

Esker Festival Orchestra which last year celebrated

their 10th anniversary with lauded performances

of Gustav Mahler’s Second Symphony. As well as

performing and conducting many world premieres by

emerging composers, Peter’s own compositions have

been performed by groups such as the Arditti Quartet,

Platypus Ensemble and at festivals including Wien

Modern. In 2020 he was the winner of the Feis Ceoil

IMRO Composition Award.

Alixe is a freelance stage director,

opera singer and writer, based

in Leipzig and Geneva. She has

worked as a revival and assistant

director in several European

opera houses, such as the Opéra

national de Lorraine, the Théâtre de la Croix Rousse

(Lyon), the Opéra de Lausanne, the Konzert und

Theater St. Gallen (Switzerland) and Irish National

Opera (Ireland). A frequent collaborator of Julien

Chavaz, she also worked with Anthony Almeida,

Jean Lacornerie and Pinar Karabulut, among

others. For her own projects, she experiments with

interdisciplinary forms. In 2022, she wrote and

created the sound installation “Lucy” with Ellinor Blixt,

exhibited at Stockholm University of the Arts, and in

2018, she presented the performance J’expérimente

avec de la matière humaine mais je ne la mange pas

at the Palais Bondy, Lyon. Since 2023, she is part of

the performing arts collective operationderkuenste,

with whom she staged Ethel Smyth’s Der Wald at the

TD Berlin. She graduated from Stockholm University

of the Arts with a Master of Opera Vocal Performance

and from Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3 with a

Master of Philosophy, specialised in Aesthetics and

Visual Cultures. Passionate about artistic research,

she explores non-narrative structures, the process

of the creation of meaning and the experience of

misunderstanding in the context of performing arts.

She studied dramaturgy with Synne Behrndt in

Stockholm. As a performer, she has been involved

in opera productions, theatre plays, performances

and films. She recently won the fourth prize at the

Concours International de Chant Lyrique de Namur.

Grace Morgan is a theatre and opera

maker and director and is currently

a member of the INO Studio. She

is co-artistic director of theatre

company tasteinyourmouth (Dublin

Fringe Artists in Residence 2024).

Her recent directing credits include: Hysterically

Shopping! to some sort of end... a new opera with

Glasshouse Ensemble as part of Dublin Theatre

Festival+ in October 2024, Landmark Productions

and Octopus Theatricals Theatre for One (Cork

Midsummer Festival), Puccini’s Suor Angelica as part

of Wexford Festival Opera 2023 and You’re Needy

(sounds frustrating) (Summerhall, Edinburgh Fringe

Festival 2024, Dublin Fringe Festival, nominated for

best production 2023 and First Fortnight award),

Narcissus (Dublin Fringe Festival 2021 and The

Chiswick Playhouse), The Sudden (Associate

Director, Dublin Dance Festival, Pan Pan), MESPIL

IN THE DARK LIVE (co-director, Pan Pan). She also

directed Drop in 2023 as part of the Druid Debuts in

Galway International Arts Festival. Grace has worked

as an Assistant and Associate Director for leading

Irish companies such as Pan Pan, Dead Centre

and OneTwoOneTwo. She has toured with shows to

international venues including Lincoln Center (New

York), Centquatre-Paris, Skirball Center (New York), FFT

Düsseldorf and BAM New York. Grace was previously

the Associate Artistic Director of Pan Pan theatre.

Making his debut at Irish National

Opera in this role, American

baritone Michael Chioldi has quickly

gained the reputation as one of

the most sought-after dramatic

baritones of his generation having

received acclaim from critics and audiences for his

portrayals of the dramatic baritone roles of Verdi,

Puccini, and Richard Strauss. His many roles include

the title roles in Wagner’s Der fliegende Holländer,

Verdi’s Rigoletto, Nabucco, and Macbeth, and John

Adams’ Nixon in China; Rodrigo in Verdi’s Don Carlo,

Conte di Luna in Verdi’s Il Trovatore, and Germont

in Verdi’s La traviata; Gerard in Giordano’s Andrea

Chenier; Scarpia in Puccini’s Tosca and Sharpless in

Puccini’s Madama Butterfly. A frequent performer of

American and English works, he premiered the role

of Man in Anthony Brandt’s The Birth of Something

in 2008 and has also appeared as John Proctor

in Robert Ward’s The Crucible and John Sorel in

Menotti’s The Consul. Michael made his debut at New

York’s Metropolitan Opera as Fléville in Giordano’s

Andrea Chénier with Luciano Pavarotti and Aprile

Millo under the baton of James Levine. His recent

performance in the new production of Daniel Catán’s

Florencia en el Amazonas was seen around the world

as part of the Met Opera Live in HD series. This

season, Michael returns to the Metropolitan Opera

(New York) as Amonasro in a new production of

Verdi’s Aida and as the title role in Verdi’s Rigoletto,

and returns to Palm Beach Opera (Florida) as

Germont in Verdi’s La traviata.

32

33

BIOGRAPHIES

SORAYA MAFI

SOPRANO

GILDA

BEKHZOD DAVRONOV

TENOR

DUKE OF MANTUA

JULIAN CLOSE

BASS

SPARAFUCILE

NIAMH O’SULLIVAN

MEZZO-SOPRANO

MADDALENA

Lancashire-born soprano Soraya

Mafi studied at the Royal Northern

College of Music and Royal College

of Music. A former Harewood Artist

at the English National Opera,

her roles for the company include

Tytania in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream,

Mabel in Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance,

Yum Yum in Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado and

Amor in Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice. Elsewhere, she

has appeared as Morgana in a new production

of Handel’s Alcina for Glyndebourne; Susanna in

Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro for Seattle Opera and

Welsh National Opera; Despina in Mozart’s Così fan

tutte for English National Opera; Anne Trulove in

Stravinsky’s The Rake’s Progress for Glyndebourne

on Tour; Musetta in Puccini’s La bohème for ENO

at Alexandra Palace, Echo in Strauss’s Ariadne auf

Naxos at the Edinburgh International Festival, Nanetta

in Verdi’s Falstaff for Garsington Opera, Gretel in

Humperdink’s Hänsel und Gretel, Constance in

Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites and First Niece in

Britten’s Peter Grimes for Grange Park Opera, Aminta

in Mozart’s Il re pastore at Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris,

Cintia in Legrenzi’s La divisione del mondo for the

Opéra national du Rhin (Strasbourg), Cleopatra in

Handel’s Giulio Cesare for English Touring Opera, and

Suor Genoveva in Puccini’s Suor Angelica for Opera

North. On the concert platform she has sung with the

BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the BBC Symphony

Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra,

Seattle Symphony Orchestra, Scottish Chamber

Orchestra, Academy of Ancient Music, and Ensemble

Matheus with conductors such as Jonathan Cohen,

Jean-Chrisophe Spinosi and Ludovic Morlot.

Bekhzod graduated from the State

Conservatory of Uzbekistan where

he debuted the roles of Duca di

Mantova in Verdi’s Rigoletto, Tamino

in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, and the

title role in Offenbach’s Les Contes

d’Hoffmann. He subsequently joined the Opera Studio

of the Alisher Navoi Opera and Ballet Grand Academic

Theater in Tashkent where he sang Young Gypsy in

Rachmaninov’s Aleko and Boyar Lykov in Rimsky-

Korsakov’s The Tsar’s Bride. Bekhzod has also been

a member of the ensemble at the Bolshoi Theatre,

Moscow, and won Second Prize at Operalia 2021. This

is his debut with Irish National Opera. The 2024/25

season sees Bekhzod make a series of other exciting

house and role debuts including Alfredo Germont in

Verdi’s La traviata and Rodolfo in Puccini’s La bohème

at Dallas Opera, and Sir Edgardo di Ravenswood in

Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor and Rodolfo in La

bohème at Semperoper Dresden, before making his

debut at the Salzburg Festival. Future seasons will see

him make debuts at Royal Opera House, London and

Opernhaus Zürich, and return to The Metropolitan

Opera (New York), Bayerische Staatsoper (Munich)

and Wiener Staatsoper (Vienna). Recent highlights

include Cassio in Verdi’s Otello at Wiener Staatsoper

(Vienna), Don Ottavio in Mozart’s Don Giovanni at

Teatro di San Carlo, Naples, Prunier in Puccini’s La

rondine at the Metropolitan Opera (New York), Alfredo

Germont in La traviata at Santa Fe Opera, Rodolfo in La

bohème at Prague State Opera and with Glyndebourne

on Tour, Anatol Kuragin in Prokofiev’s War and Peace

at Bayersiche Staatsoper (Munich) and Aljeja in

Janáček’s The House of the Dead at the Ruhrtriennale

Festival (Germany).

Julian Close began his career

reading for PhD in Applied Physics

at University of Leeds, before

studying at the Royal Northern

College of Music. For Irish National

Opera, Julian Close previously

appeared as First Soldier in Strauss’s Salome. He has

also performed with major companies throughout

the UK including The Royal Opera, London, English

National Opera, Garsington Opera at Wormsley,

Welsh National Opera and West Green House Opera.

He sang Theatre Manager/Banker in Berg’s Lulu at

Dutch National Opera and Baron Ochs in Strauss’ Der

Rosenkavalier at Teatro Colón, Buenos Aires. His North

American engagements have included projects at

the Metropolitan Opera, Minnesota Opera, Opéra de

Montréal, Pacific Symphony and Washington National

Opera. Recent engagements have included Indra in

Massenet’s Le Roi de Lahore for Dorset Opera Festival,

Commendatore in Mozart’s Don Giovanni for Saffron

Opera Group, Talpa in Il tabarro and Simone in Gianni

Schicchi in Puccini’s Il trittico for Scottish Opera

and Hunding in Wagner’s Die Walküre and Hagen in

Götterdämmerung for Longborough Festival Opera’s

cycles of Der Ring des Nibelungen, as well as a return

to the Metropolitan Opera as Sparafucile in Verdi’s

Rigoletto. Upcoming engagements include a variety of

roles over two seasons at Grange Park Opera.

Irish mezzo-soprano Niamh

O’Sullivan is praised for her

“bewitchingly beautiful, dark vibrant

voice” (Süddeutsche Zeitung) and is

a 2023–2025 BBC New Generation

Artist and former studio member of

the Bayerische Staatsoper. Niamh recently performed

Ursule in Irish National Opera’s concert performance

of Berlioz’s Beatrice & Benedict. Other roles for INO

include Charlotte in Massenet’s Werther, Mercédès

in Bizet’s Carmen, Tisbe in Rossini’s La Cenerentola,

Third Maid in Strauss’s Elektra, Asteria in Vivaldi’s

Bajazet and Alva in the world premiere of Donnacha

Dennehy and Enda Walsh’s The First Child. The 24/25

season sees Niamh makes her house and role debut

as Ino in Handel’s Semele for Théâtre des Champs

Elysées and as Olga in Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin

for Canadian Opera Company. She also sings Ino in

the Royal Opera House, London. Niamh continues

as a 2023–2025 BBC New Generation Artist, with

plans to include a gala concert with the BBC National

Orchestra of Wales and recitals at the Wigmore

Hall alongside her recital work in the UK and at

home in Ireland. In the 23/24 season, Niamh made

her role debut as Wellgunde in a new Barrie Kosky

production of Wagner’s Das Rheingold at the Royal

Opera House, London, Wellgunde in Das Rheingold &

Götterdämmerung and Mercédès in Bizet’s Carmen

for Opernhaus Zürich and her role debut as Carmen

in Peter Brook’s La tragédie de Carmen at the Buxton

Festival. Other recent plans have included Meg Page

Verdi’s Falstaff at Opernhaus Zürich and Mercédès in

Carmen at English National Opera.

34 35

BIOGRAPHIES

PHILLIP RHODES

BARITONE

COUNT MONTERONE

ANDREW MASTERSON

TENOR

MATTEO BORSA

SEÁN BOYLAN

BARITONE

MARULLO

DAVID HOWES

BASS-BARITONE

COUNT CEPRANO

UK-based New Zealand baritone

Phillip Rhodes was the winner

of the 2005 New Zealand Aria

Competition and was awarded

second place at the International

Montserrat Caballé Competition

in 2008. This is his debut with Irish National Opera.

He is a former Emerging Artist with New Zealand

Opera and has since appeared regularly with the

company in principal roles, most recently as the title

role of Verdi’s Macbeth. This season he returns to

the Royal Opera House, London as Don Fernando

in Beethoven’s Fidelio, sings a series of opera aria

concerts with Welsh National Opera, and further

ahead he will return to Opera Australia and to the

Auckland Philharmonia. Recent highlights include

Giorgio Germont in Verdi’s La traviata (Opera

Australia, Scottish Opera); Escamillo in Bizet’s

Carmen (Royal Opera House, Opera North, Welsh

National Opera, The Grange Festival, Scottish Opera);

his role debut as Figaro in Mozart’s The Marriage of

Figaro (Opera North); Monterone in Verdi’s Rigoletto

(Royal Opera House); Scarpia in Puccini’s Tosca

(Nederlandse Reisopera); Father in Humperdinck’s

Hansel and Gretel and Ford in Verdi’s Falstaff

(Scottish Opera); Speaker in Mozart’s The Magic

Flute (Welsh National Opera); Jud Fry in Rodgers &

Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! (Grange Park Opera);

and King in Massenet’s Le Cid (Dorset Opera). In his

native New Zealand, he has recently appeared as

Don Pizarro in Beethoven’s Fidelio in concert with

Auckland Philharmonia; and as Giorgio Germont in

Verdi’s La traviata and Enrico in Donizetti’s Lucia di

Lammermoor for Wellington Opera.

Andrew Masterson is a Lyric

Tenor from Omagh and a current

member of Irish National Opera’s

Company Chorus. He is an alumnus

of the Royal Northern College

of Music, and graduated with

distinction in both his Masters and Postgraduate

Diploma. Andrew’s desire to pursue a career in vocal

music came from his Bachelor of Music degree at

Queen’s University Belfast. This is his third role with

Irish National Opera, having performed Landlord

in Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier and Second Jew in

Strauss’s Salome. Andrew has performed in many

prestigious venues including the Royal Albert Hall,

London, Bord Gáis Energy Theatre, Grieghallen

(Bergen, Norway), Oslo Opera House and Usher Hall,

Edinburgh. He is a guest tenor in the Edvard Grieg

Vokalensemble, which performed in the 2023 BBC

Proms with the London Philharmonic, conducted by

Edward Gardner. He has been a soloist and chorus

singer with Buxton International Festival, Wexford

Festival Opera and Bergen Nasjonale Opera. In

2023 he became the latest recipient of the Young

Musician’s Platform Award, supported by the National

Lottery through the Arts Council of Northern Ireland.

Seán has previously appeared with

Irish National Opera as Alcandro in

Vivaldi’s L’Olimpiade and as Moralès

in Bizet’s Carmen. He graduated

with Distinction from the Guildhall

School of Music and Drama, where

he studied with Robert Dean. In Ireland, he studied at

the Royal Irish Academy of Music with Virginia Kerr.

At the Guildhall School he was a Guildhall School

Scholar and a Gwen Catley Scholar, supported by

the Amar-Frances & Foster-Jenkins Trust. He was

the winner of the NI Opera Festival of Voice 2014

and was a semi-finalist in the 42nd International

Hans Gabor Belvedere Competition 2024. Recent

operatic roles include Guglielmo in Mozart’s Così

fan tutte (Garsington Opera); Tarquinius in Britten’s

The Rape of Lucretia (Potsdam Winteroper); the title

role in Mozart’s Don Giovanni (Nevill Holt Opera &

Garsington Opera) and Pluto/Aristaeus (cover) in

Offenbach’s Orpheus in the Underworld (English

National Opera). In the 2024/2025 season Seán

makes his Electric Picnic debut, returns to the Abbey

Theatre for Augusta Gregory’s Grania and will appear

as Frank in Johann Strauss’s Fledermaus for INO.

David Howes has previously

appeared with Irish National

Opera as Police Commissioner in

Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier and

Don Fernando in Beethoven’s

Fidelio. Originally from Limerick,

he began his studies there with Olive Cowpar,

and graduated with a Bachelor of Music from TU

Dublin Conservatoire. A member of the ensemble

at Oper Köln (Cologne) for the 2023/2024 season,

David is a graduate of the International Opera

Studio at Oper Köln, the Irish National Opera

Studio, the inaugural Wexford Factory at Wexford

Festival Opera, and the Young Artist Programme

with NI Opera. Oratorio performance highlights

include Craig Hella Johnson’s Considering Matthew

Shephard (WDR Funkhausorchester, Köln), Verdi’s

Requiem and Beethoven’s 9th Symphony (Co-Orch

Dublin). David’s opera highlights include William

Parkinson in the world premiere of Frank Pesci’s

The Strangers, Sciarrone in Puccini’s Tosca, Fiorello

in Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia (Oper Köln), Envy

and Ismeron in Purcell’s The Indian Queen, Abbot

and Ferryman in Britten’s Curlew River (Theater

Aachen), Badger and Parson in Janacek’s The

Cunning Little Vixen (Longborough Festival Opera),

Count Ceprano in Verdi’s Rigoletto (Opera Theatre

Company), Marchese d’Obigny in Verdi’s La traviata

(Lyric Opera Productions), and Figaro in Mozart’s

Le nozze di Figaro (Zerere Arts Festival, Portugal).

In February 2025, David joins the ensemble at

Theater Magdeburg, where he will perform the roles

of Doctor Grenvil in La traviata, Sarastro in Mozart’s

Die Zauberflöte, and Soldier in the world premiere of

Gerald Barry’s Salome.

36

37

BIOGRAPHIES

LEANNE FITZGERALD

MEZZO-SOPRANO

GIOVANNA

SARAH LUTTRELL

MEZZO-SOPRANO

COUNTESS CEPRANO

CAROLINE BEHAN

SOPRANO

A PAGE

MATTHEW MANNION

BASS-BARITONE

A COURT USHER

Leanne Fitzgerald graduated from

TU Dublin Conservatoire with an

MMus in Vocal Performance, where

she studied with Stephen Wallace

and répétiteur Aoife O’Sullivan.

Leanne is a member of the 2024/25

Irish National Opera Studio and Company Chorus.

This season she will cover the role of Prince Orlofsky

in Strauss’ Die Fledermaus (INO). Previously with

INO, Leanne sang the role of the Notary in Donizetti’s

Don Pasquale, Noble Orphan 3 in Strauss’s Der

Rosenkavalier and A Slave in Strauss’s Salome. In

2024, Leanne sang the role of Maeve Shine in Opera

Workshop Limerick’s production of The Ballybruff

Triology by Luke Byrne and Shirley Keane. Previously

Leanne performed with Sestina in Opera Collective

Ireland’s award-winning production of Handel’s

Semele in 2022. Leanne was Company Artist with

Cork Opera House in 2018 and sang the role of

Pitti-Sing in its production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s

The Mikado. Leanne is a keen ensemble singer both

in Ireland and abroad, and from 2017–2022 she was

a regular member of Chamber Choir Ireland. With

Utopia Choir, founded by Teodor Currentzis, Leanne

performed twice at the Salzburg Festival in The Indian

Queen by Purcell, adapted by Peter Sellars, and

Mozart’s Don Giovanni, directed by Romeo Castelucci,

as well as performances of Mozart’s Mass in C Minor

and J.S. Bach’s St Matthew Passion.

Irish mezzo-soprano Sarah Luttrell

is a master’s graduate of the Royal

Conservatoire of Scotland, where

she gained first-class honours

under the tutelage of Wilma

MacDougall, with funding from

the RCS Trust. A member of the Irish National Opera

Company Chorus, this season she makes her INO

debut as Countess Ceprano in Verdi’s Rigoletto. Sarah

has also performed with Lyric Opera Productions,

Blackwater Valley Opera Festival, Clonter Opera, NI

Opera, and Wexford Festival Opera. In 2022–2023,

Sarah was a member of the Wexford Factory Young

Artist programme where she performed the roles of

Zibaldona in Alma Deutscher’s Cinderella (2022),

Zita and La Ciesca in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi and

Zulma in Rossini’s L’Italiana in Algeri (2023). Most

recently, Sarah made her German debut singing the

Second Witch in Opera Collective Ireland’s production

of Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas at Kammeroper Schloss

Rheinsberg. Sarah is an avid recitalist and oratorio

singer. Oratorios include J.S. Bach’s Matthew Passion,

Handel’s Messiah, Mozart’s Requiem, Rossini’s Petite

messe solennelle and Haydn’s Nelson Mass in venues

throughout Ireland, the United Kingdom and Europe.

In 2021–22, Sarah was a scholar with British vocal

group Voces8 and in 2022–23 she was a full time

member Chamber Choir Ireland.

Caroline, a native of Kill, Co. Kildare,

is currently a member of Irish

National Opera’s Company Chorus

for the 2024/25 season. Caroline

is a graduate of both the Royal

Irish Academy of Music and the

Royal Northern College of Music, where she studied

with Mary Brennan, Dearbhla Collins and Elizabeth

Ritchie. Caroline has performed with Irish National

Opera, Opera Collective Ireland, Blackwater Valley

Opera Festival and Lyric Opera Productions, along

with performances across the UK and Europe. Her

operatic roles include Mimì in Puccini’s La bohème,

Humpty Dumpty/Dormouse in Will Todd’s Alice’s

Adventures in Wonderland, Venus in Purcell’s King

Arthur, Serpina in Pergolesi’s La Serva Padrona,

Juno in Cavalli’s La Calisto and Damsel in Caccini’s

La Liberazione di Ruggiero dall’isola d’Alcina.

Concert Engagements include Soprano Soloist for

the Manchester premiere of Bernstein’s Mass at

Bridgewater Hall and the ‘Joyce in Music’ Recital for

Blackwater Valley Opera Festival and The Princess

Grace Irish Library Monaco. An experienced oratorio

singer, Caroline’s repertoire includes Handel’s

Messiah, Haydn’s The Creation and Stanford’s Mass

in G. In March 2024, Caroline was the winner of the

Dramatic Cup and Quigley Awards at the Feis Ceoil.

Other awards include the N.W. Award at RNCM, the

‘Canto al Serchio Award’ at the Trench Award Finals,

3rd Place in the RIAM Irené Sandford Award, the

Gaiety Bursary and the inaugural winner of the Song

Prize at Northern Ireland’s Festival of Voice.

A member of the Company Chorus

of Irish National Opera, Matthew

has sung the roles of First Priest in

Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, Second

Prisoner in Beethoven’s Fidelio,

Hunter in Rossini’s William Tell

(with INO/Nouvel Opéra Fribourg), Fourth Waiter

in Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier, and Servant in

Verdi’s La traviata for INO. A 2021 Rising Stars

recipient, Matthew Mannion recently made his

Abbey Theatre debut as male vocalist in Augusta

Gregory’s Grania. Matthew has over a decade of

performance experience and has performed many

roles including Masetto in Mozart’s Don Giovanni

(Opera Britain), Melisso in Handel’s Alcina (Saluzzo

Opera Academy), Guglielmo in Mozart’s Così fan

tutte (Flat Pack Music), Bartolo in Mozart’s Le nozze

di Figaro (TU Dublin Conservatoire), and created the

roles of Liam in Backstage and Owen in The Stalls,

both by Tom Lane (Ulysses Opera/Cork Midsummer

Festival). Other roles include Moralès in Bizet’s

Carmen, Marchese d’Obigny in Verdi’s La traviata

and Imperial Commissioner in Madama Butterfly

(Lyric Opera Productions) and Victorian 4 in William

Todd’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (Opera

Collective Ireland). Matthew has also sung as a soloist

in oratorios including Handel’s Messiah, Stanford’s

Mass in G, Mozart’s Requiem, Beethoven’s Mass

in C, Charpentier’s Messe de Minuet, C.P.E. Bach’s

Magnificat, and Haydn’s Seven Last Words from the

Cross. Matthew has been a finalist in the Bernadette

Greevy Bursary, Glenarm Festival of Voice, and Trench

Award, and received 3rd place in the 2017 Irene

Sanford Competition.

38

39

BIOGRAPHIES


ORCHESTRA

The Irish National Opera Orchestra performs in most

of INO’s productions and is made up of leading Irish

freelance musicians. Members of the orchestra

have a broad range of experience playing operatic,

symphonic, chamber and new music repertoire.

The orchestra’s work includes Strauss’s Elektra in

2021, Der Rosenkavalier in 2023 (“delivers all the

swelling romanticism and range of tone and colour

you could ask for,” Irish Examiner) and Salome in

2024 (“a thumping triumph” Irish Examiner). It is

equally at home in music by Donizetti and Rossini

(“wonderful energy and musical vision,” Bachtrack in

2022 on Rossini’s William Tell) and Puccini (“the INO

Orchestra handled the sweeping moods in masterly

fashion,” Business Post in 2023 on La bohème).

The orchestra also performs chamber reductions

for touring productions, including Donizetti’s Don

Pasquale (2022) and Massenet’s Werther (2023). The

orchestra’s contemporary repertoire has included

Thomas Adès’s Powder Her Face (2018), Maxwell

Davies’s The Lighthouse (2021), and Brian Irvine

and Netia Jones’s Least Like The Other, Searching for

Rosemary Kennedy, in which it made its international

debut at the Royal Opera House in London in 2023.

The orchestra can be heard on the INO recording of

Puccini’s La bohème on Signum Classics.


CHORUS

The Irish National Opera Chorus is a flexible ensemble

of professional singers that has ranged in number

from four, in Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice, to 60, in Verdi’s

Aida. The chorus is a valuable training ground for many

emerging singers and has been heard in venues large

and small throughout Ireland as well as internationally.

The membership is mostly drawn from singers based

in Ireland. There is currently a core of 16 singers in

the INO Company Chorus who perform in all of the

company’s large-scale productions requiring chorus.

Additional singers are engaged in the Extra Chorus for

each individual opera as required. In 2022 the chorus

appeared in Rossini’s William Tell, one of the most

chorally demanding operas. INO Company Chorus

members are regularly featured in solo roles and

have most recently been heard in INO’s productions

of Richard Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier, Puccini’s La

bohème and Verdi’s La traviata. During the 2024/25

Season, chorus members will also feature in solo roles

Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore and in a touring production

of Johann Strauss’s Die Fledermaus.

JOIN THE FLYING

DUTCHMAN’S

CIRCLE

We are ready

for these artistic

challenges, but

we need your

help as we

set sail.

FERGUS SHEIL

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, INO

Our first Wagner opera, The Flying Dutchman, represents a milestone

for Irish National Opera and with it, the Flying Dutchman’s Circle, an

initiative offering supporters a chance to be closely associated with this

historic first for the company. As a Seafarer of the Flying Dutchman,

you will be part of an exclusive group of visionaries who appreciate

the transformative power of opera and are committed to expanding

its reach and impact. The Flying Dutchman demands the highest

levels of artistry, creativity and technical expertise to fully capture its

depth and complexity. Your investment will ensure that we can meet

these demands and present a production of scale and beauty.

AS A MEMBER OF THE CIRCLE, YOU’LL ENJOY A HOST OF

EXCLUSIVE OPPORTUNITIES INCLUDING:

Premium Seating:

2 premium seats to the opening

night of The Flying Dutchman at

Dublin’s Bord Gáis Energy Theatre.

Behind-the-Scenes Access:

Invitations to exclusive rehearsals,

offering a glimpse into the creative

process behind this monumental

production.

Meet-the-Cast Event:

An opportunity to meet the cast and

creative team, providing intimate

insights into the making of the opera.

Acknowledgement:

Your name listed in the programme

and on our website as a key supporter

of INO’s first Wagnerian venture.

Exclusive ‘Flying Dutchman’ Dinner:

Be our guest at an exclusive Flying

Dutchman-themed dinner. This

unforgettable evening promises

a fusion of culinary delights and

thematic elegance, celebrating the

spirit of Wagner’s masterpiece in

grand style.

VIP Updates: Regular updates and

insider information, keeping you

informed and engaged with the

production’s progress.

For more information or to join the Flying Dutchman’s Circle,

please contact Aoife Daly at aoife@irishnationalopera.ie

40

41


STUDIO – NURTURING THE FUTURE OF IRISH OPERA

FOUNDERS CIRCLE

Anonymous

Desmond Barry & John Redmill

Valerie Beatty & Dennis Jennings

Mark & Nicola Beddy

Carina & Ali Ben Lmadani

Mary Brennan

Angie Brown

Breffni & Jean Byrne

Jennifer Caldwell

Seán Caldwell & Richard Caldwell

Caroline Classon, in memoriam

David Warren, Gorey

Audrey Conlon

Gerardine Connolly

Jackie Connolly

Gabrielle Croke

Sarah Daniel

Maureen de Forge

Doreen Delahunty & Michael Moriarty

Joseph Denny

Kate Donaghy

Marcus Dowling

Mareta & Conor Doyle

Noel Doyle & Brigid McManus

Michael Duggan

Catherine & William Earley

Jim & Moira Flavin

Ian & Jean Flitcroft

Anne Fogarty

Maire & Maurice Foley

Roy & Aisling Foster

Howard Gatiss

Genesis

Hugh & Mary Geoghegan

Diarmuid Hegarty

M Hely Hutchinson

Gemma Hussey

Kathy Hutton & David McGrath

Nuala Johnson

Susan Kiely

Timothy King & Mary Canning

J & N Kingston

Kate & Ross Kingston

Silvia & Jay Krehbiel

Karlin Lillington & Chris Horn

Stella Litchfield

Jane Loughman

Rev Bernárd Lynch & Billy Desmond

Lyndon MacCann S.C.

Phyllis Mac Namara

Tony & Joan Manning

R. John McBratney

Ruth McCarthy, in memoriam Niall

& Barbara McCarthy

Petria McDonnell

Jim McKiernan

Tyree & Jim McLeod

Jean Moorhead

Sara Moorhead

Joe & Mary Murphy

Ann Nolan & Paul Burns

F.X. & Pat O’Brien

James & Sylvia O’Connor

John & Viola O’Connor

Joseph O’Dea

Dr J R O’Donnell

Deirdre O’Donovan & Daniel Collins

Diarmuid O’Dwyer

Patricia O’Hara

Annmaree O’Keefe & Chris Greene

Carmel & Denis O’Sullivan

Líosa O’Sullivan & Mandy Fogarty

Hilary Pratt

Sue Price

Landmark Productions

Riverdream Productions

Nik Quaife & Emerson Bruns

Margaret Quigley

Patricia Reilly

Dr Frances Ruane

Catherine Santoro

Dermot & Sue Scott

Yvonne Shields

Fergus Sheil Sr

Gaby Smyth

Matthew Patrick Smyth

Bruce Stanley

Sara Stewart

The Wagner Society of Ireland

Julian & Beryl Stracey

Michael Wall & Simon Nugent

Brian Walsh & Barry Doocey

Judy Woodworth

The Irish National Opera Studio is at the heart

of our mission to nurture the next generation

of Irish opera talent. This programme offers

a unique opportunity for emerging artists to

develop their skills and build their careers.

Highlights include:

Performance Opportunities: Members

participate in Irish National Opera productions,

learning from seasoned artists, performing

onstage, singing in the chorus, understudying

lead roles or assisting in rehearsals.

Professional Mentoring: Participants receive

individual coaching, attend masterclasses and

benefit from the expertise of renowned Irish

and international artists and coaches including

Brenda Hurley, Elīna Garanča, Danielle de

Niese, Joseph Calleja and Tara Erraught.

Skill Development: Support on all aspects

of the industry is a key feature of the

programme including advice on performance,

presentation, language skills, personal musical

growth and professional career guidance.

For information contact Studio

& Outreach Producer James Bingham at

james@irishnationalopera.ie

STUDIO SPOTLIGHT

2020/21 INO Studio Alumni, David

Howes is singing the role of Count

Ceprano in Rigoletto. Following

his time at the INO Studio, David

was accepted to The International

Opera Studio at Oper Köln, and

went on to join their ensemble. In

February 2025 David will become

a member of ensemble at Theater

Magdeburg.

42

37

WELCOMING NEW

AUDIENCES WITH

TECHNOLOGY

REIMAGINING THE BOUNDARIES OF OPERA IN THE DIGITAL AGE

At Irish National Opera, we believe opera is for everyone.

By infusing our work with a pioneering spirit and cuttingedge

technology, we invite an ever-growing audience to

access the dynamism of opera.

Our innovative ‘Isolde’ project offers a ground-breaking

platform for synchronising visuals and audio on personal

devices, allowing audiences to use their mobile phones with

projected or screened performances in public or site-specific

locations. Isolde’s user-friendly interface replaces amplified

audio equipment, with potential applications for museums,

galleries, and audio descriptions for the visually impaired in

theatre settings.

INO is part of an exciting new project funded by Horizon

Europe, titled Hybrid Extended reAliTy, or HEAT, exploring

the impact of hologram technology on the opera experience.

HEAT paves the way for next-generation multi-sensory, hyperrealistic,

immersive experiences. We look forward to this latest

journey in the opera-meets-innovation space.

Our award-winning virtual reality community opera, Out of the

Ordinary/As an nGnách, was created by communities from

Inis Meáin to Tallaght in collaboration with composer Finola

Merivale, librettist Jody O’Neill, and director Jo Mangan.

Images: Clockwise from top,

Photos 1 & 2, Screening of

Brian Irvine’s Scorched Earth

Trilogy at Trinity College Dublin,

photos: Dumbworld; Screening

of Peter Maxwell Davies’s The

Lighthouse at Hook Head,

photo: Pádraig Grant; Audience

member at Finola Merivale’s

virtual reality opera, Out of

the Ordinary/As an nGnách, at

Dublin Fridge Festival, photo:

Simon Lazewski.

44

47 45

INO FUTURE LEADERS

NETWORK

Wagner

A NIGHT AT THE OPERA IS A GREAT

WAY TO MEET PEOPLE AND EXPAND

YOUR NETWORK.

This new initiative is tailored to young

professionals across a variety of industries

looking for an enjoyable way to expand

their professional network.

INO is a vibrant, dynamic company and our operas

attract a broad and varied audience. Developing a

robust network is crucial to a successful career and

we have created a unique opportunity for professionals

to meet and connect before an opera performance.

With this network, we want to create a space for you to

connect with individuals across a range of sectors, who

have the potential to be your future colleagues, clients,

customers or collaborators. We aim for this network to

empower you to forge meaningful connections that can

open doors to new opportunities, enhance your skill

set, and broaden your perspective – all while enjoying

a world-class opera performance!

Photo: participants at an INO Future Leaders

Network event

Photographer: Mark Stedman

This initiative is proudly supported by a partnership

with Spencer Lennox.

23 - 29 MARCH 2025

BORD GÁIS ENERGY THEATRE

TICKETS FROM €15

bordgaisenergytheatre.ie

To sign up to this network, or if your company

is interested in hosting an event for the

INO Future Leaders Network, please contact

us on development@irishnationalopera.ie

or +353 1 6794962

52

CO-PRODUCTION WITH GARSINGTON OPERA. GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED

BY THE JOHN POLLARD FOUNDATION. IN ASSOCIATION WITH BORD GÁIS ENERGY THEATRE.


47

A new opera every week

to watch for free from home

The Rake’s Progress, Norwegian Opera & Ballet © Erik Berg

INSPIRATIONAL

INNOVATIVE IMPACTFUL

SHARING OUR PASSION FOR OPERA

WITH AUDIENCES AROUND IRELAND AND BEYOND

INO OPEN FOYER

Our Open Foyer initiative unites communities through opera.

During our recent tour of Emma O’Halloran’s Trade and Mary

Motorhead we worked with local community groups in Cork,

Tralee and Ennis to produce creative responses to the opera,

which were showcased in the theatre foyers before each

show. They included art exhibitions, poetry recitals and music

performances by singer songwriters. All participants received

free tickets to our performances. The INO Open Foyer Series is

generously supported by INO Member, William Earley.

INO ON OPERAVISION

Through OperaVision, select INO productions have reached

over 210,000 viewers worldwide, with our recent production

of Salome attracting over 50,000 views. We look forward to

sharing more in 2025 including our 2024 Studio Gala and The

Flying Dutchman.

INO SCHOOLS PROGRAMME

This season we will welcome over 400 school students to

productions at the Gaiety and Board Gáis Energy Theatre with

subsidised tickets. Our outreach team will provide resource

packs and school workshops with opera professionals

including directors, singers and dancers. The INO Schools

Programme is generously supported by Mary Canning in

memory of Timothy King.

“I didn’t know there were so many components that go

together in an opera. There’s so much work that goes

into it. It’s really amazing.”

“Outstanding performance, outstanding orchestra,

wonderful production. Thoroughly engrossing, and

the finale was spellbinding.”

OPERAVISION.EU

49

INO TEAM

Pauline Ashwood

Head of Planning

James Bingham

Studio & Outreach Producer

Janaina Caldeira

Bookkeeper

Sorcha Carroll

Communications Manager

Aoife Daly

Development Manager

Diego Fasciati

Executive Director

Lea Försterling

Digital Communications

Executive

Ciarán Gallagher

Marketing Executive

Cate Kelliher

Business & Finance Manager

Lauren Kelly Maternity cover

Studio & Outreach Executive

Anne Kyle

Stage Manager

Amy O’Dwyer Maternity cover

Digital Producer

Gavin O’Sullivan

Head of Production

Renata Rîmbu

Development Administrator

Muireann Sheahan

Orchestra & Chorus Manager

Fergus Sheil

Artistic Director

David Smith

Accountant part time

Paula Tierney

Company Stage Manager

RJ Walters-Dorchak

Artistic Administrator

Board of Directors

Jennifer Caldwell Chair

Tara Erraught

Gerard Howlin

Dennis Jennings

Suzanne Nance

Ann Nolan

Davina Saint

Bruce Stanley

Jonathan Friend

Artistic Advisor

Irish National Opera

69 Dame Street

Dublin 2 | Ireland

T: 01–679 4962

E: info@irishnationalopera.ie


@irishnationalopera

@irishnatopera

@irishnationalopera

Company Reg No.: 601853

Registered Charity: 22403

(RCN) 20204547

50

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