As we look forward to the autumn, it’s a chance to welcome back our Music Director, Tomáš Hanus, as he returns to lead the Orchestra in several contrasting pieces of work.
Tomáš will conduct two of our three operas in Cardiff and on tour* over the coming months. He once again collaborates with Artistic Director David Pountney on our new production – the epic War and Peace – where they have worked together to create a version of the piece that represents most closely what composer Prokofiev intended. Their production promises more drama and a focus on the love story central to the plot.
In contrast, we will then get to see a completely different side of Tomáš as he brings the subtle wit and humour of La Cenerentola, Rossini’s Cinderella, to life. Those of you who saw him conduct performances of Die Fledermauswill have already experienced the joy he brings to a comic opera and we can expect more of the same as he takes on this sparkling score.
David and Tomáš will be taking part in the latest of our Opera Insight talks on 2 Sep, as they discuss how their new version of War and Peace came together. This free event is currently sold out, but check with the Ticket Office at Wales Millennium Centre for any returns.
Concert-goers will also be pleased to know that Tomáš returns to the International Concert Series at St David’s Hall for two performances this season. For the first, in November, he and the WNO Orchestra will be joined by Armenian cellist Narek Hakhnazaryan and Slovakian baritone Gustáv Beláček for a programme of Rossini, Elgar and Janáček. This is followed in March by our final performance at this year’s concert series, with pieces by R Strauss, Mozart and Brahms where Tomáš and the Orchestra will be joined by pianist Paul Lewis for Mozart’s Piano Concerto No 27.
If all of that wasn’t keeping him busy enough, there’s also an appearance at the Janáček Festival in Brno where David and Tomáš’s production of From The House of the Dead, which proved so popular with WNO audiences in 2017, will feature.
Once our opera season finishes, there’s no rest for Tomáš as he will head to Germany to conduct The Bartered Bride for Bayerische Staatsoper in December.
*War and Peace does not play Bristol or Liverpool