WED 02 - MON 07 DEC RNCM OPERA The CUNNING LITTLE VIXEN LEOŠ JANÁČEK WED 02, FRI 04, MON 07 DEC | 7.30PM SUN 06 DEC | 3PM RNCM THEATRE LEOŠ JANÁČEK The CUNNING LITTLE VIXEN The Cunning Little Vixen Music by Leoš Janáček Libretto by Leoš Janáček based on the novella by Rudolf Těsnohlídek, translated by David Pountney Translation © David Pountney Used with permission of David Pountney. All Rights Reserved. 3 SYNOPSIS CAST THE ADVENTURES OF THE VIXEN BYSTROUŠKA Emyr Jones*, Ross Cumming** Forester Act I Pasquale Orchard*, Alicia Cadwgan** Vixen Sharp-Ears How they caught Bystrouška Georgia Mae Ellis*, Melissa Gregory** Fox Goldenmane Bystrouška in the courtyard of Lake Lodge Philip O’Connor*, Gabriel Seawright** Schoolmaster/Mosquito Bystrouška in politics Liam Karai*, George Butler** Priest/Badger Bystrouška gets the hell out Ema Rose Gosnell*, Lila Chrisp** Forester’s Wife/Owl Ranald McCusker*, Samuel Knock** Rooster/Mr Pásek Act II Sarah Prestwidge*, Zoë Vallée** Chocholka/Mrs Pásek Bystrouška dispossesses William Kyle*, Thomas Ashdown** Harašta Bystrouška's love affairs Rebecca Anderson Lapák Bystrouška's courtship and love Lorna Day Woodpecker Katy Allan Vixen as a Cub Interval Georgia Curwen Frantík/Cricket Emily Varney Pepík/Frog Act III Anastasia Bevan Grasshopper/Jay Bystrouška outran Harašta from Líšeň How the Vixen Bystrouška died RNCM OPERA CHORUS DANCER FOX CUBS The baby Bystrouška - the spitting image of her mother Lleucu Brookes Jade Carty Lleucu Brookes Jade Carty Jade Carty Dominic Carver HENS Abigail Jenkins James Connolly Louise Ashdown Billie McCaffrey CREATIVE TEAM Thomas Coyle Sasja Haeck Hope Rodenhurst Joby Dixon Hebe Hamilton Elena Whiteley Mitchell Greengrass Taylor London Verity Williams Nicholas Kok conductor Abigail Jenkins Nikki Martin Alice Yeoman Sam Brown director Iona Kay Ahlyssa Mundy Kaapo Ijas (Mills Williams Junior Fellow in Conducting)*** assistant conductor Billie McCaffrey Emily Noon Naomi Kuyck-Cohen designer Daniel Nardone Morgana Warren-Jones Joshua Gadsby lighting designer Phoebe Palmer Morgann Runacre-Temple choreographer Armand Rabot Christopher Pulleyn (Sir John Fisher Foundation Junior Fellow) repetiteur Hope Rodenhurst Kevin Thraves chorus master Elena Whiteley Tom Wilks Verity Williams SCHOOL OF VOCAL STUDIES AND OPERA Alice Yeoman * Wednesday 2 December and Sunday 6 December Professor Lynne Dawson Head of Vocal Studies and Opera ** Friday 4 December and Monday 7 December Sara Fulgoni Deputy Head of Vocal Studies *** Monday 7 December Kevin Thraves Deputy Head of Opera James Kelly School of Vocal Studies and Opera Administrator 4 5 NICHOLAS KOK Nicholas Kok is a very versatile Köln, Oper Leipzig, Staatstheater musician and conductor. In both the Stuttgart, Teatro Sao Carlos Lisbon, concert hall and the opera house he Coliseu Porto, Opera Factory, Opera St has conducted numerous world and Louis and English Touring Opera. He British premières by composers such as has worked with numerous orchestras Birtwistle, Holt, Maxwell Davies, Reich, and ensembles throughout Europe Turnage and Xenakis. He has served and has appeared at many festivals as Principal Conductor and Artistic including the BBC Proms, Edinburgh, CREATIVE Advisor to Psappha and Sinfonia Viva, Huddersfield and Zürich Contemporary and in 2012/13 he was Principal Guest Music Festivals. His own compositions Conductor of the WDR Rundfunk have been recorded for television in the Chor. He enjoys a very close working UK. Nicholas’ reworking of King Arthur relationship with the BBC Singers. has been recorded by JOIN at Oper TEAM Nicholas has conducted an extremely Stuttgart, and his Chamber Opera The varied repertoire in the opera house, Waste…….no land will be performed ranging from Monteverdi to Turnage. by the students at the Stuttgart Companies he has worked for include Opernschule in January. This is his English National Opera, Opera North, second production with the RNCM. Staatstheater Braunschweig, Oper 6 7 SAM BROWN KAAPO IJAS Sam Brown is a stage director based France, he directed the world première Kaapo Ijas (b.1988) is the Mills Williams NEO, Swedish Army Band, Helsinki in London. He read Classics at Oxford of The Importance of Being Earnest by Junior Fellow in Conducting at the Police band and numerous other and completed the MFA in Theatre Gerald Barry (Opera Now magazine’s Royal Northern College of Music. project ensembles and choirs during Directing at Birkbeck College, Première of the Year: 12/13 season) and He has been fiercely interested in masterclasses and in concerts. In 2019 London. He was assistant director at Candide by Leonard Bernstein. Recent composing, performance, drama, Ijas made his debut concerts with West Yorkshire Playhouse and staff productions have included Peter group dynamics and the orchestra Guards Band Helsinki and Lappenranta director for Opera North. In 2011, with Brook’s chamber version of Carmen itself for all his life. In 2012 it led him city orchestra. designer Annemarie Woods, he won for the Wermland Opera, Sweden, to conducting studies first in Sibelius the European Opera Directing Prize and a European tour of Fidelio for the Academy then Zürcher Hochschule der Ijas has been invited to various and the Ring Award where they won Swedish Chamber Orchestra with Künste and ultimately Royal College prestigious masterclasses including all available prizes. He was a board Thomas Dausgaard. of Music in Stockholm where he Gstaad Menuhin Festival 2018 with member of SDUK 2015-17, and as chair graduated from in spring of 2017. Jaap van Zweden, Riccardo Muti of its opera committee he devised and Sam co-wrote the libretto for The Opera Academy 2017 in Ravenna, managed a professional development Water Palace by Stephen Shulman His teachers during his studies and the 8th Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich training programme in opera directing (Tête a Tête Opera Festival, London), masterclasses include Jorma Panula, masterclass with David Zinman in association with the National Opera which he also directed, and was Johannes Schlaefli, Jaap van Zweden, in 2017 and Järvi Academy with Studio. Since 2016 he has been Artistic commissioned by the Grange Festival Riccardo Muti, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Paavo and Neeme Järvi in 2016. He Associate at Wilton’s Music Hall. In to write an original text for Elena David Zinman, Neeme and Paavo Järvi was semifinalist in Donatella Flick August 2016 he participated in the Langer: Trotsky and Kahlo. He is and Atso Almila. Ijas has conducted Conducting Competition 2016 as well Opera Europa Opera Management currently under commission by the i.a. BBC Philharmonic, Tonhalle- as in Lovro von Matačić competition in Course in Bregenz. Danish Arts Council to co-write an Orchester Zürich, Tapiola Sinfonietta, 2019 and among the top 7 in Cadaqués original libretto with Niels Brunse on Norrköping SO, South Jutland SO, Conducting Competition 2017. In 2018 Sam has directed plays, musicals and the subject of Christopher Marlowe for Musikkollegium Winterthur, Gävle Ijas was selected as 24 conductors from operas across Europe including at Andy Pape (Hamlet Scenen, Helsingor), Symfoniorkester, Kurpfälzisches 566 applicants to take part in Nikolai English National Opera, Welsh National and is developing an original musical. Kammerorchester (Mannheim), Hradec Malko competition in Copenhagen Opera, Bavarian State Opera, Residenz In December 2013 he was profiled by Kralove Philharmonia, KMH Symphony and won the 3rd prize in Jorma Panula Theater, Munich, Schauspielhaus and Opera magazine in their Directors Orchestra, Seinäjoki City Orchestra, Conducting Competition in Vaasa. Opera Graz, Theater an der Wien, and Edition alongside Graham Vick, Barrie KammarensembleN, Norrbotten Grand Théâtre de Genève. For the Kosky and Patrice Chereau. Opéra National de Lorraine in Nancy, slbrown.co.uk 8 9 NAOMI KUYCK-COHEN MORGANN RUNACRE-TEMPLE Naomi is a designer for performance, Traverse Theatre), Nightclubbing (The Morgann began choreographing at Storyhouse Chester). For opera: Barber and trained at Wimbledon College of Lowry and tour), OUT (Curve Theatre school, winning the Central School of of Seville (Grande Theatre Geneve, Art. She also co-designs set, costume, and tour), The Tyler Sisters (Hampstead Ballet Choreography Award in 2002 WNO). She has created over 10 works and lighting with Joshua Gadsby. Theatre), Trigger Warning (Tate Modern and 2003. for Ballet Ireland since 2005, including and Tour), And Yet It Moves (Young five full-length ballets: Cinderella Co-designs include: There is a Light Vic Taking Part), The Tempest (Royal She has made work for Northern (2009), Romeo & Juliet (2010), that Never Goes Out: Scenes from the Exchange Theatre Young Company), Ballet, Scottish Ballet, English National Scheherazade (2011), Carmen (2013) Luddite Rebellion (Royal Exchange F*ck You Pay Me (The Bunker), In Ballet , Stuttgart Ballet, Ballet Central, a n d Coppelia (2015). Theatre), Trap Street (Schaubühne, My Dreams I Dream I’m Dreaming The Print Room, Images of Dance, and New Diorama), Dinomania (New (Theatre Royal Plymouth), Passin’ Thru Royal Ballet Participation, BBC Young Morgann performed as a dancer for Diorama), Trainers: Or The Brutal (Lyric Hammersmith), Feast (Battersea Dancer of the Year and Wilton's Music companies including Rosie Kay Dance Unpleasant Atmosphere of this Most Arts Centre and Tour). Hall. I n partnership with Jessica Company and the Curve Foundation. Disagreeable Season (Gate Theatre), Wright, she directs and choreographs She trained at Central School of Ballet Dreamplay (Vaults).