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Publication 2 Annual Report 2016 – 2017 1 1 Chairman’s Introduction 3 Contents General Director’s Report 4 Director of Opera’s Report 6 Outreach and Education: Inspire 16 Communications and Development 20 Financial Performance 26 Trustees and Committees 27 Donors and Supporters 28 Front cover image: Anne Sophie Duprels and Joel Montero in Zazà © Robert Workman Left: Victoria Simmonds and John Savournin in Don Giovann i © Robert Workman CHAIRMAN’S INTRODUCTION Opera Holland Park had another successful year in only be done with the financial support of our donors, 2016/17, our second year as an independent company. sponsors and other supporters. We are immensely grateful to the many individuals and organisations that, in Most importantly, we continued to develop our artistic recognition of this, have increased their level of support excellence. Our four productions received excellent critical over the last two years. I very much hope that more of you and audience acclaim. Seat occupancy remained high at will be prepared to consider helping us in this way – you 94%. Our Inspire outreach programme continued to go will have received our Loyalty and Giving brochure setting from strength to strength. We are absolutely delighted that out the various schemes which are now available. Inspire has just received the 2018 International Opera Award for Education & Outreach. We greatly appreciate all the support we receive. Investec Wealth & Investment continues its excellent and Our fundraising activity made good progress in generating committed Title Sponsorship. We have now reached 21 additional donations and putting in place the foundations Founders and hope to increase this in the current year. for the growth required in future years. Significant savings Our Benefactors, Ambassadors, Envoys, Friends, Trusts, were made in production and operational costs and we Foundations and Corporates continue to provide vital continue to invest in improved and more cost-efficient support. Our many volunteers give us wonderful facilities. assistance throughout our activities. It is therefore pleasing that we were able to reduce our I should also like to thank all those working within Opera operating deficit by £226,000 (from £937,000 the previous Holland Park. Our two Directors, Michael Volpe and James year to £711,000) while at the same time developing our Clutton, our Management and staff who worked tirelessly artistic excellence and maintaining our commitment to to produce another successful year. I should like to pay Opera Holland Park’s unique mission of accessibility and particular tribute to the way in which the whole company affordability, combined with an extraordinary outreach responded to the tragedy of Grenfell Tower and the loss of programme and Young Artists Scheme. our friend and colleague, Debbie Lamprell. Our Trustees are We remain on track towards our medium term goal of an effective and constructive Board, working closely with reaching financial sustainability. Finding further significant the Directors and Management. Dr Martin Lockett stepped efficiency savings will be more difficult in future. It down in May having taken up a new position in China, therefore becomes even more important to achieve our and we thank him for his significant contribution. The targets for fundraising and non-ticket income. To assist, a Campaign Board is already giving valuable support to new Campaign Board was established early in 2017. I am our fundraising efforts. delighted that Stuart Corbyn has taken over from me as its Charles Mackay CBE Chairman from 1 January 2018 when he also joined the Chairman, Opera Holland Park Board of Trustees. As an independent company, producing high-quality opera, even as cost-effectively as we do but with ticket prices substantially below those of other opera companies, can Left: Elizabeth Llewellyn and Matteo Lippi in La rondine © Robert Workman 3 GENE RAL DIR ECTOR’S REPORT The financial year saw the company consolidate the work Our primary business aims during the 2016/17 financial and success of our first year of independence. The 2017 year were to continue to reduce our overall costs, to use Season featured five operas, with three new productions focused investment of funds to improve facilities, and to and two revivals, including our family opera Alice , running continue to build our fundraising activity. It is pleasing to at a total house capacity of around 94% occupancy note that overall our expenditure was reduced and several throughout. Acclaim from the public and critics was markers of company performance have improved.This has significant as we continued to offer a broad mix of been achieved in a number of ways, including: repertoire. A comprehensive review of the season can be found in the following pages. Further cost efficiencies Investment in previously rented facilities, particularly First and foremost, Opera Holland Park (OHP) is a creative the new toilets enterprise and we continue to maintain our strong commitment to the accessibility of our work, which A change of production schedule includes extending our activity outside of the summer Support and attraction of new partners and sponsors season. All that we do is in the service of the work on our Continued growth of our Founders, with four new stage, which we believe makes a significant contribution to Opera Holland Park Chorus in Káťa major donors, bringing the total to 21 Kabanová the cultural life of London and plays a vital role in the Developing a series of new fundraising and © Robert Workman development of the British operatic industry. stewardship events Increased digital output and a commensurate reduction in other media advertising The challenge of producing a season of opera on an important historical site in the heart of a London park continues to demand invention and creativity, and the company is maintaining its focus on developing new ideas with regard to patron experience and comfort. By the start of the 2018 Season, a major landscaping project carried out by the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea on the terrace in front of Holland House will have been completed. This beautiful new scheme will provide a more accessible site for park users outside of our summer season. 4 The 2017 Season experienced one of the most challenging and extraordinary events in our history. Amid the tragedy of the Grenfell Tower fire and the death of our friend and colleague, Debbie Lamprell, the company found reserves of strength and community spirit to produce a moving performance of Verdi’s Requiem which raised £42,000 for the Rugby Portobello Trust. The 2017 Season also marked the first year of a new three- year partnership with Investec Wealth & Investment, which continues to be a productive, creative and enormously supportive sponsorship, helping OHP spread its work far and wide. We are extremely grateful to the company and look forward to the next two years of our partnership. Our team at OHP have made great advances, about more of which you will find in the following pages. In the 2018 Season we welcome new partners, donors and other sources of financial support. Our co-productions with Scottish Opera ( Ariadne auf Naxos , 2018) and with New York City Opera ( Isabeau , 2018/2019) extend the company’s international profile and reputation. I would like to give praise and thanks to all of the Trustees, Campaign Board members, staff, volunteers and of course all the supporters of Opera Holland Park. Michael Volpe General Director, Opera Holland Park Aida Ippolito and Anne Sophie Duprels in Zazà © Robert Workman 5 DIRECTOR OF OPERA’S REPORT A lovely #OHPRondine tonight. @LiztheLyric proving again what a fabulous Puccini soprano she is, smoky bottom, velvety middle, soaring top Puccini’s La rondine The opening production of the season is always important. What the critics said… Set in the 1950s, this production worked wonderfully. It ‘A patchwork of Viennese waltzes and Parisian foxtrots, was felt that we needed glamour and elegance, so the street songs and heart-spinning arias, this show offers team of Martin Lloyd-Evans and takis were asked to direct sweet escapism and salty realism.’ and design La rondine following the success of their Anna Picard, The Times production of Die Fledermaus for Opera Holland Park in 2016. The three different locations in the piece were ‘OHP’s James Clutton always casts impeccably. Not only designed beautifully, and a particular coup de théâtre , the has he found a splendid Magda in Elizabeth, but also a top- dramatic scene change from Act I to Act II, will be class Italian lyric tenor, Matteo Lippi, as her ardent remembered by everyone who saw it. student/lover, Ruggero.’ David Mellor, Mail on Sunday Under the baton of Matthew Kofi Waldren, two fantastic artists led this cast: Elizabeth Llewellyn returned to OHP ‘This is an operatic confection that can be warmly after five years, and Matteo Lippi, who made his OHP recommended to anyone with a sweet-tooth and a soft debut. They had wonderful support from Stephen Aviss heart.’ and Tereza Gevorgyan. The remainder of the principal cast Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph had come up through the ranks at OHP, as former members of the OHP Chorus, alumni of our Young Artists Scheme or both. Floating home after a simply magical production @operahollandpk of #OHPRondine – Elizabeth Llewelyn of particular majesty – ma bravi tutti! Stephen Aviss, Elizabeth Llewellyn, Tereza Gevorgyan, Henry Grant Kerswell, Sophie Dicks, Alistair Sutherland, Timothy Langston and David Stephenson in La rondine © Robert Workman 6 @ollyplatt the best production of DG I have seen. Claustrophobic and true to the score. Well done! #OHPGiovanni Mozart’s Don Giovanni Don Giovanni is often called the ‘director’s graveyard’. It is notoriously difficult to get right, so having a major success was even more rewarding. Conducted by Dane Lam, directed by Oliver Platt, and designed by Neil Irish, this production looked stunning and the claustrophobic nature of a cruise liner worked well.
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