Midsummer Opera

Our final artist profile! With one performance down and Sunday's still to come, meet the three men who complete Pagliacci's tragic ensemble...

Tonio (Nick Marsden)
The simple-minded clown who opens the opera with its famous Prologue, Tonio harbours an unrequited love for Nedda. Spurned and humiliated when he tries to kiss her, his jealousy becomes the catalyst for tragedy when he reveals Nedda's affair to Canio. This complex role requires a baritone who can convey both Tonio's wounded vulnerability and his vengeful darkness.

London-based baritone Nick returns to MSO following appearances as Prince Yeletsky (Queen of Spades), the Monk (Don Carlo) and Rambaldo (La rondine).

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Silvio (Ben Watkins)
The young villager who captures Nedda's heart and pleads with her to abandon her life with the travelling players. Silvio's passionate love duet with Nedda seals their fate when Tonio overhears their plans to elope.

Welsh baritone Ben sings widely in opera and recital. A recent Papageno was reviewed as offering "sublime baritone arias" and moving audiences to "laughter and tears". He balances an active performing career with a flourishing London teaching practice.

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Beppe (Paul Blundell)
A member of Canio's travelling troupe, Beppe plays Harlequin in the commedia performance, providing moments of charm and levity before the opera's devastating conclusion.

Paul has sung Vašek (Bartered Bride), Royal Herald (Don Carlo) and Chekalinsky (Queen of Spades) with MSO. Most recently he performed the role of Colonel Fairfax (Yeoman of the Guard) with Ferrier Operatic Society.

A few tickets still remain ... well worth seeing!

Sunday 23 November 2025 at 5pm
https://wegottickets.com/midsummeropera

Continuing our profiles: the woman at the heart of Pagliacci's fatal triangle...

In her marriage to the volatile Canio, Nedda dreams of freedom and finds solace in the arms of the young villager Silvio. Her famous "Ballatella" reveals her longing to escape like the birds she watches, but her affair sets in motion the tragedy that will engulf them all. Nedda requires a soprano who can convey both her yearning for liberation and the fatal consequences of seeking it.

Niki Ihnatowicz returns to MSO following her appearance as Smetana's eponymous Bartered Bride. Other recent roles include Elisabetta (Don Carlo), Sieglinde (Die Walküre), Governess (Turn of the Screw) and Chrysothemis (Elektra)

A few tickets remain so do take the chance while you can:

Performances:
Friday 21 November 2025 at 7pm
Sunday 23 November 2025 at 5pm
https://wegottickets.com/midsummeropera

Continuing our artist profiles: today we introduce the tormented clown himself. Canio, leader of a travelling commedia troupe, must don his clown's costume and make audiences laugh even as jealousy tears him apart.

When he suspects his wife Nedda of betrayal, the line between theatrical performance and devastating reality dissolves -culminating in one of opera's most searing moments: "Vesti la giubba," where a broken man must paint on a smile and perform.

This demanding role requires both dramatic intensity and vocal power to capture Canio's descent from proud performer to tragic avenger.

John Upperton, adds Canio to his much acclaimed repertoire of MSO roles. John has also appeared as a soloist with the Royal Opera, English National Opera, Norwegian Opera, Garsington and Birmingham Operas, and at prestigious venues including the Queen Elizabeth Hall, the Purcell Room and St John's Smith Square.

Tickets are selling fast so hurry to avoid disappointment!

Performances:
Friday 21 November 2025 at 7pm
Sunday 23 November 2025 at 5pm

https://wegottickets.com/midsummeropera

As we count down to Friday and Sunday's performances, discover the characters and artists behind this unforgettable pairing of passion and betrayal. We begin with the "La voix humaine".

In Poulenc's devastating one-woman tour de force, Elle is a woman clinging to the fragments of a disintegrating relationship through a single telephone call. Over forty minutes of raw emotional exposure, we hear only her side of the conversation with the lover who is leaving her - her desperation, fragile dignity, anger, and aching vulnerability laid completely bare. This demanding role requires both exceptional vocal stamina and the dramatic intensity to convey a complete and lonely emotional journey.

We are delighted to welcome back French mezzo-soprano Sophie Boyer. She graduated from the CNSMD of Lyon and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Recently she has been working on rediscovering female composers with pianist Marie-Elise Boyer, especially the music of Marguerite Labori. https://www.sophie-boyer.com

Some tickets remain for both performances. This is well worth seeing!

Friday 21 November 2025 at 7pm
Sunday 23 November 2025 at 5pm

https://wegottickets.com/midsummeropera

Sonic splendour! The Soloists, Chorus and Symphony Orchestra of MSO under the baton of David Roblou at the sitzprobe for this week’s performances of Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci and Poulenc’s La voix humaine.

From whispered desperation to operatic fury: Poulenc's one-woman tour de force meets Leoncavallo's explosive classic in a concert performance that lays bare the human heart.

Friday 21 November 2025 at 7.00pm
Sunday 23 November 2025 at 5.00pm

St John’s Waterloo, SE1 8TY

Some tickets still remain for both performances:
https://wegottickets.com/midsummeropera #

Just a week to go before the start of our 40th anniversary season and our unusual and fascinating pairing: Leoncavallo’s beloved dramatic verismo masterpiece, Pagliacci, preceded by the relatively seldom performed La voix humaine by Francis Poulenc.

Ever since its first appearance in 1892, Pagliacci has been a success. And no wonder, it contains what was without doubt (until ‘Nessun Dorma’ in 1990) the most famous tenor aria of all time: ‘Vesti la giubba’ in which Canio the clown bravely dons his jester’s uniform despite his breaking heart. Apart from ‘Vesti la giubba’, the opera is full of glorious arias and duets, not forgetting the famous prologue which explains the composer’s intentions to the audience. Our cast includes John Upperton (Canio), Nicola Ihnatowicz (Nedda), Nick Marsden (Tonio), Ben Watkins (Silvio), Paul Blundell (Beppe), Owain Gwynfryn and Maximilian Catalano (Contadini).

The Leoncavallo will be preceded by a performance of Francis Poulenc’s 1959 one-act monodrama La voix humaine; Poulenc adapted a Cocteau play in which his nameless heroine “Elle” is in despair over her lost lover. During its composition Poulenc worked with soprano Denise Duval who had just premiered the role of Blanche in his Dialogues des Carmélites. Echoing this, Sophie Boyer, our own Blanche in 2019, will return to sing the demanding virtuoso role in La voix humaine.

This thrilling double bill brings the acclaimed MSO Symphony Orchestra and Chorus conducted by Artistic Director David Roblou.

Moments from last night’s dress rehearsal for this week’s performances of Tchaikovsky’s The Queen of Spades at St John’s Waterloo.

A few tickets remain so why not come and join us for an unforgettable evening of hauntingly beautiful Tchaikovsky melodies and fateful encounters as Herman’s dangerous gambling obsession spirals out of control in this rare opportunity to experience this Russian operatic treasure (sung in English).

Friday 21 March at 7:00pm
Sunday 23 March at 5:00pm
Tickets: https://wegottickets.com/midsummeropera

It's Sitzprobe time ahead of this coming week's performances of "Queen of Spades" at St John's, Waterloo.

We are delighting in Tchaikovsky's lush orchestration as Midsummer Opera's impressive Symphony Orchestra oscillates between intimate, chamber-like moments and full orchestral grandeur and our impassioned soloists and Midsummer Opera's acclaimed chorus showcase lyrical, melodic arias with dramatic recitatives and ensemble pieces. A feast for the senses!

Some tickets still remain for both performances so do try and get along ... you won't be disappointed!

Performances (in English)
Friday 21st March 2025 at 7pm
Sunday 23rd March 2025 at 5pm
Tickets available from: https://wegottickets.com/midsummeropera