It’s hard to believe that it’s been 20 years since Sian Cameron (Youth Opera Vocal Coach) and I met seven enthusiastic young people at Welsh National Opera’s Tyndall Street. Here the Singing Club was born, a group that would grow into WNO’s Youth Opera for 10 to 14-year-olds and 14 to 18-year-olds. Over the years there have been many highs, our annual staged production of course, but we’ve also taken a world premiere on tour, sung at Buckingham Palace and even performed live on BBC Radio 3.
To mark our special anniversary WNO Producer, commissioned a piece to bring both our Youth Opera groups together, along with some past alumni and two early career soloists. I met with some amazingly talented writers who are all doing fantastic things, but we were delighted when Welsh-born, Bethan Marlow accepted the job of librettist and so we set to work on what became Panig! Attack!!
Our story concerns two groups of young people (one slightly taller than the other!). Two groups who have very different ways: Panig are cautious and inquisitive, whilst Attack are bold and full of bravado. They’re musically distinct too; Panig sing in close harmony, with a tendency to wallow and reflect. Attack’s music is wild, cartoon-like, and reminiscent of an 8-bit computer game.
Unlike our Youth Opera groups, when these two collectives meet… things don’t go well. Challenging each other to think differently and see the world anew, is a story of survival in the face of a global emergency. Accompanied by WNO Orchestra, this is a heart-warming story that shows the exceptional talent of WNO Youth Opera.
Bethan Marlow has done an amazing job incorporating many ideas directly from our participants. You can expect humour, a touch of the absurd and perhaps even a zombie or two. Underneath all the chaos though, is a rather touching story about the futility of conflict and how sometimes we are all so focused on what makes us distinct from each other that it blinds us to the common ground we share.
WNO Youth Opera is a group that Sian and I are very proud to have been associated with. Training opera singers of the future isn’t necessarily the primary aim of the group; of course, Youth Opera does offer that training and many of our participants have gone on to become not only singers, but actors, designers and stage managers, but most have followed all kinds of paths unrelated to theatre. We’ll happily work with anyone interested in music or drama, willing to give up part of their Saturday each week. They’ll make new friends, become part of a team and grow in confidence, all while engaging with an art form we love. Rehearsals are always a joy, and I’m proud of how welcoming our groups are to new members, and how kind and generous our participants are to each other.
Celebrating 20 years of Welsh National Opera’s Youth Opera