Opera-lovers were spoilt this year with a tour of Hansel and Gretel and NBR New Zealand Opera's first venture into Janacek territory.
Next year's offerings, alas, are slimmer and safer, consisting of two main stage productions - Rossini's The Italian Girl in Algiers in June and Tchaikovsky's Eugene
Onegin in October.
Director Aidan Lang is pleased that both use "in-depth New Zealand talent of proven quality" from established names like Patricia Wright and Patrick Power to the younger talents of Katherine Wiles and Kristen Darragh.
The coup, he feels, is bringing back Wendy Dawn Thompson to head the Rossini cast as the feisty Isabella and the team of Anna Leese and Martin Snell playing Tatyana and Gremin in the Tchaikovsky opera.
Most importantly, says Lang, both are new productions, making use of the company's recently acquired technical centre in Onehunga which means it can create its own sets.
"The Italian Girl is a co-production with Scottish Opera which will be fantastic for our international profile," he enthuses. "We are building it here, so it will be a New Zealand production that is seen in Britain. It's about time we did a comedy and I am sure that [director] Colin McColl will do it at face value rather than impose the usual operatic schtick on it, which is always the way to make these things come alive again."
In 2010 a touring production will return and a local work is in the pipeline. Watch this space.
