Jilted lovers, a mysterious stranger, the hint of a ghost story: Bellini’s La sonnambula mingles comedy with melodrama in its tale of a young woman found in the wrong place at the wrong time. From Jenny Lind to Maria Callas, Amina – the sleepwalker of the title – has been embodied by some of opera’s greatest divas and her crowning aria is a showstopper. As ever in opera, themes of madness, misunderstanding and betrayal loom large; will Amina have her happy ending, or end in despair?
Performed in Italian, with English subtitles
Producer / Director: Richard Tegid Jones
Musical Director: Kelvin Lim
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In a small Swiss village, Amina and Elvino prepare for their wedding, but there are clouds on the horizon: Elvino’s former fiancee Lisa seethes with jealousy, townspeople fear a ghostly apparition who wanders by night, and an enigmatic visitor stirs up old history and new rivalries.
As night falls, the revelations come. The mysterious arrival is no stranger, but Count Rodolfo, the long lost son of the lord of the manor; and the ghost is none other than Amina herself, afflicted with a curious condition. She is a sleepwalker, and when her nocturnal wanderings lead her into Rodolfo’s bedchamber – where she’s soon discovered by the jealous Lisa – the fallout is devastating.
Rejected by her husband-to-be, scorned by the village, Amina must fight for her reputation, her sanity, and her marriage – before Elvino’s affections return to his old love for good. Will truth and innocence triumph, or will jealousy and scandal win the day?
Capitalising on a nineteenth-century fascination with sleepwalking, Bellini’s La sonnambula is an opera semiseria, combining elements of romance, melodrama and comedy. One of his best known stage-works, its lead roles were created by two of the greatest singers of their day – Giuditta Pasta and Giovanni Battista Rubini – and was a triumph at its premiere.
Though less well-known today, it remains a masterpiece of the genre, and Amina’s final aria, “Ah, non credea mirarti” carries special resonance: its opening line – “Ah flower, I did not expect to see you fade so soon” – is inscribed on the tomb of the composer, who died in 1835 aged just 33.
Cast
Amina – Julieth Lozano
Colombian soprano Julieth Lozano graduated with a Masters in Vocal Performance and an Artist Diploma in Opera from the Royal College of Music, under the tutelage of Dinah Harris. An Irene Hanson and Independent Opera at Sadler’s Wells scholar, Julieth was a 2019/20 Young Artist at the National Opera Studio in London.
In the 2021/22 season, Julieth made her debut for Welsh National Opera at the delayed Dubai Expo 2020 in the new production of Al Wasl as Zayed/Young Mary under the direction of Sir David Pountney and baton of Justin Brown. Later this season, Julieth returns to Longborough Festival Opera as Woodbird in Siegfried and she also returns to her native Colombia, as Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro under the baton of Martin Haselböck.
Previous engagements include Vixen (The Cunning Little Vixen) for Longborough Festival Opera, Zerlina (Don Giovanni) at the Verbier Festival, Tytania (Midsummer Night’s Dream) for Opera al Parque, Colombia, Despina (Cosi Fan Tutte) at the International Music Festival at Cartagena, Colombia, Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro) at RCM, and Norina (Don Pasquale) and Adina (L’elisir d’amore) for Random Opera.
A 2020 Kathleen Ferrier competition finalist, and 2018 recipient of the President’s award given by The Prince of Wales, Julieth appeared in the BBC documentary Queen Victoria: My Musical Britain recorded in 2019 at Buckingham and Kensington palaces. In 2016 she participated in Georg Solti’s Academy and Verbier Festival’s Project Opera, where she was awarded the Prix Thierry Mermod. She has performed at the Royal Albert Hall, V&A Museum and many other venues around the globe.
Elvino – Phillip Costovski
Australian tenor Phillip Costovski completed his Master of Arts at the Royal Academy of Music with Distinction, generously supported by the Joyce Campbell Lloyd Scholarship. He is a 2021 Samling Young Artist, working with pianist Malcolm Martineau, soprano Joan Rodgers and actor James Garnon of The Globe Theatre in their intensive program. He was also the inaugural recipient of the 2021 Lady Galleghan London Award for Australian singers, during which he performed with Opera Holland Park as Pásek in The Cunning Little Vixen and the chorus of L’amico Fritz.
This year he was selected as an Opera Holland Park Young Artist and performed the role of Triquet in their production of Eugene Onegin. Phillip’s operatic roles also include Rinuccio (Gianni Schicchi) for Sound Thinking Australia, and Count Belfiore (La finta giardiniera) and Bénédict (Béatrice et Bénédict), both at Queensland Conservatorium.
Lisa – Ana Fernandez Guerra
Spanish soprano Ana Fernandez Guerra is currently a member of the prestigious opera studio in Cologne, Germany where she has sung the roles of Pünktchen (Pünktchen & Anton – Eröd), Freia (Das Rheingold für Jung und Alt), Rossweisse (Walküre für Jung und Alt), Gutrune (Götterdämmerung für Jung und Alt), Gretel (Hänsel und Gretel) and First Wood Sprite (Rusalka). For her performance of Pünktchen she was hailed as the “discovery of the production”.
Prior to her time in Germany, Ana studied at the Royal College of Music as a full Midori Nishiura scholarship recipient and was a Nevill Holt Opera Young Artist (2019/20). She was also a Ferrer Salat prize winner of the 2020 International Tenor Viñas Competition in Barcelona and a member of the Opera studio of Álcala de Henares, Madrid in 2020.
Teresa – Arlene Belli
Winner of the Help Musicians Sybil Tutton Opera Award 2021, Arlene is an Italian mezzo-soprano with Middle-eastern descent, a recent 20/21 Young Artist and now a 21/22 Associate Artist at the National Opera Studio (NOS) in London, where she had the chance to study with coaches of the calibre of Dame Sarah Connolly, Susan Bullock, Marie McLaughlin, Della Jones and Greenan supported by Lorna Parker and Chris Bown.
Born in Padua, she is a graduate of the Conservatorio S. Cecilia in Rome, winner of the first prize in the 2018 Simone Alaimo Competition, finalist at the 71st International Aslico Competition and semifinalist in both the 2019 Handel Singing Competition (London) and the International Singing Competition for Baroque Opera «Pietro Antonio Cesti» (Innsbruck).
Her operatic appearances include Lucretia (The rape of Lucretia) for Opera North, Zaida (Il Turco in Italia) for Longhope Summer Opera, Dorina (La Diavolessa) at Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza, Rosina (Il Barbiere di Siviglia) at Teatro Greco, Dorabella (Così fan tutte) at the Interocrea Festival, Cherubino (Le nozze di Figaro) at the EtnaOpera Festival, Andromaca (Il Polidoro) at Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza and Adele (main role in the premiere of the contemporary opera La sopravvivenza della specie) at Teatro Eliseo in Rome. Arlene has also performed for Welsh National Opera, and as a soloist at Cadogan Hall, St David’s Hall, Coliseum, Hoxton Hall, Whitehall, and Fulham Palace.
This summer, Arlene appeared as la Speranza and una Ninfa (Orfeo) at Palazzo Te in Mantua. Future engagements include Rosina with Stowe Opera and Teresa (La Sonnambula) with Random Opera Company. She will also be joining Longborough Festival Opera chorus in their production of Carmen.
Beside her classic repertoire, Arlene has dedicated herself to numerous projects in electronic music, jazz, blues music, composing and performing her original pieces, last of which inspired by poems by Garcia Lorca, written in four hands with the composer Enrico Morsillo.
Rodolfo – Richard Tegid Jones
Welsh Bass-Baritone Richard Tegid Jones studied music from an early age. He also gave up his studies at an early age, feeling that Grade 2 violin was sufficient achievement. Since then he has mostly been winging it.
Alongside a career in accountancy, Richard began performing on the amateur stage in 2003, with roles including Pooh-Bah (Mikado), Sir Ruthven Murgatroyd (Ruddigore), Sir Joseph Porter (HMS Pinafore) and Duke of Plaza-Toro (Gondoliers).
After starting Random Opera Company on a whim in 2011, Richard began training privately – first with Alison Roddy, and then with Mike Dewis – and has performed roles including Dulcamara (L’elisir d’amore), Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), Leporello (Don Giovanni), Don Pasquale (Don Pasquale) and Zuniga (Carmen).
2022 engagements include Hermit (Der Freischütz) and Rodolfo (La Sonnambula), both for Random Opera Company.
As well as performing, directing & producing opera for Random Opera Company, Richard is also a Volunteer Director of OperaUK.
Alessio – Matthew Tilley
Praised by Opera Magazine for his “Dark Baritone”, Welsh opera singer Matthew Tilley trained at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, whilst studying privately with David Kempster. In 2019 he completed a Master of Music degree at Bath Spa University graduating with distinction.
Operatic roles include Figaro (Le nozze di Figaro), Scarpia (Tosca), Donner (Das Rheingold), Escamillo (Carmen), Alfio (Cavalleria Rusticana), Marcello/Schaunard (La Boheme), Silvio (i pagliacci) and Conte Almaviva (Le Nozze di Figaro). Matthew has performed for Welsh National Opera, Longborough Festival Opera, Opera Holland Park, Mid Wales Opera, Heritage Opera, Opera Serse, and Götterdämmerung at the prestigious Edinburgh Festival.
Notary – Eleanor Rosser-Smyth
Eleanor is a London based classical soprano and actor, graduating with distinction from Trinity Laban’s MMus programme last summer where she studied under Eamonn Mulhall and Linda Hirst. Eleanor’s musical education began at the Junior Guildhall School of Music and Drama, followed by a move to the Junior Royal Academy of Music where she specialised in both voice and flute.
Recent engagements include: Lily (Lily and Bear) for Irrational Theatre, chorus and cover Papagena (The Magic Flute) for Oxford Opera, soloist work with the Thursford Christmas Spectacular, Second Woman (Dido and Aeneas) for Hurn Court Opera, Barbarina (The Marriage of Figaro) for Puzzle Piece Opera and performances at the Tate Britain as part of Martin Creed’s ‘Toast’ Exhibition.
Whilst training, Eleanor also performed the roles of Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro), Florestine (La Mère Coupable), Hero (Béatrice et Bénédict) and Florestine (The Ghosts of Versailles) – all for Trinity Laban Opera Scenes. Eleanor has also enjoyed participating in a series of masterclasses led by Dame Emma Kirkby as a bursary recipient at Dartington Festival, and gives regular recitals as part of The Orchidea Duo.
Musical Director / Piano – Kelvin Lim
Conductor, repetiteur and accompanist Kelvin Lim trained at the Royal College of Music and has worked for companies including: The Royal Opera House, English National Opera, Glyndebourne, Opera Holland Park, Grange Park Opera, English Touring Opera, Longborough Festival, Northern Ireland Opera, Neville Holt, Iford Arts and British Youth Opera. He has been Co-Director of Postgraduate Opera since 2008 and Vocal Coach since 2015 at Trinity Laban and Postgraduate Opera Scenes at The Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 2022. He has also coached for ROH Jette Parker Young Artists and been Senior Vocal Coach for Morley College Opera. He was also conductor for Vox Integra’s inaugural Opera Course in Feltre, Italy 2018.
He has gained wide recognition in the Wagner repertoire as vocal coach, official accompanist for the Wagner Competition and recipient of the Bayreuth Bursary Prize. He has worked with Anthony Negus on all Wagner operas at Longborough since 2008. Kelvin has accompanied both Sir Thomas Allen and Sir John Tomlinson in recital, and accompanied Sir John Tomlinson and Stuart Skelton on Radio 3’s “In Tune”. He has coached singers such as Aïda Garifullina, Christopher Ventris, & collaborated with Nelly Miriciou, Sir John, Keith Warner, Dame Anne Evans, Ludmilla Andrew and Susan Bullock coaching young singers, and has accompanied masterclasses given by Sir Antonio Pappano, Brigitte Fassbaender, Dame Gwyneth Jones, Dame Josephine Barstow, Nelly Miricioiu. Kelvin has performed at the Wigmore Hall, St Johns Smiths Sq, The London Coliseum and the Royal Festival Hall Clore Ballroom (the latter as musical director for Opera Forge for the Wagner 200 celebrations in 2013).
He has conducted: Carmen (ROH Education /English Pocket Opera at the Olympic Copperbox Arena) Cavelleria Rusticana and I Pagliacci, Samson et Dalila, The Turn of the Screw, Norma, Otello, La Fille du Regiment and Acis and Galatea, Beatrice et Benedict, La Boheme, Così Fan Tutte, Amahl and the Night Visitors, and been Assistant Conductor for: Der Fliegende Holländer (Longborough Festival) Don Giovanni, Un Ballo in Maschera (Winslow Hall), Albert Herring (cond. Steuart Bedford) Rape of Lucretia (Grimeborn) A Christmas Carol (Thea Musgrave-Trinity Laban). He was Chorus Master for: Opera Holland Park 2012, Chelsea Opera Group (Christmas Eve-Rimsky-Korsakov); The Mastersingers (Parsifal, Götterdämmerung), and Dorset Opera (Fliegende Holländer, La Traviata, Aïda, Fidelio).
Other Musical Director credits: Carmen (Royal Opera House Floral Hall), Madam Butterfly (Opera Up Close), The Rinse Cycle (Charing Cross
Theatre), Samson & Dalila (Arcola Theatre Grimeborn), I Pagliacci (Opera Up Close), Hansel & Gretel (Kings Head Theatre), La Voix Humaine (Rosemary Branch Theatre), Le Nozze di Figaro (Dulwich Opera Company), The Bear, Rita (Oborne Festival).
Future projects include; Repetiteur Siegfried (Longborough Festival Opera), Assistant conductor Siegfried/Götterdämmerung (Grimeborn) Conductor: Cosi fan Tutte (GAP Opera Festival), Musical Director La Sonnamblua (Random Opera)
Chorus
Imogen Baker, Davide Basso, Bonnie Callaghan, Angharad Davies, Beren Fidan, Jessica Hopkins, Tomos Owen Jones, Emily Noon, Ellen Pearson, Bruno Rivera, Joel Robson, Eleanor Rosser-Smyth, Callum Speed, Stephanie Waldron
First performed at Temple Speech Room, Rugby on Saturday 30 July 2022