Wanderlust Opera is coming to the Royal Wanganui Opera House

Barbara Paterson, as Ernesto, and Craig Beardsworth, as Malatesta, in Don Pasquale coming to the Royal Wanganui Opera House next week.

Wanderlust Opera is coming to the Royal Wanganui Opera House with their touring opera, Don Pasquale by Donizetti.

The company, started by soprano Georgia Jamieson Emms, performs fully-staged operas with shorter running times and quirky new English translations.

This is their third touring opera under the direction of Jacqueline Coats, acclaimed for her recent La Boheme for NZ Opera, and musical director Bruce Greenfield, well-known to Whanganui audiences for his decades-long involvement with NZ Opera School and Whanganui Opera Week.

In the sparkling Donizetti comedy, a miserly bachelor (Stuart Coats in the title role) gets more than he bargained for when he enters into an arranged marriage with Norina (Georgia Jamieson Emms, who also wrote the English libretto).

The aim of Wanderlust Opera is to take small-scale professional opera outside the major cities and make the art form accessible and affordable.

The company is very focused on reaching out to young people and any high school student accompanied by a paying adult can attend the Whanganui performance for free.

Wanderlust has also gifted more than 100 tickets to high school students in Whanganui.

"If we can expose young people to this art form, it has a much better chance of survival in the future," says Jamieson Emms.

"Because at the moment opera is struggling to stay relevant.

"There is still an elitist stereotype associated with the word opera and that's what we are trying to change - it should be enjoyed by everyone and anyone."

Wanderlust's previous productions have been praised for their wit, whimsy, and broad appeal.

Tuesday night's performance promises to be fun and frothy and a wonderful opportunity for Whanganui to see a classic comic opera right on their doorstep.

Don Pasquale: Royal Wanganui Opera House, Tuesday, February 5 at 7.30pm. Adult $42, senior/unwaged $38, student ID $23, school student accompanied by an adult gets free admission (subject to availability) – only available through the box office.