A celebration of rural life and love, The Bartered Bride is set in a small Czech village. Young lovers Mařenka and Jeník want to marry. However, her parents have different ideas and have engaged a marriage broker to arrange her betrothal to Vašek, the son of a wealthy landowner. When Jeník unexpectedly ‘barters’ with the marriage broker to not contest the arrangement, he breaks Marenka’s heart. But a traveling circus arriving in town brings more surprises than anyone expects. Is it possible to save true love and gain a profit?

Dates in July:

Sunday 30th, 6.00pm -  La fiancée vendue- Kruchina

Dates in August:

Wednesday 2nd, 6.00pm - La fiancée vendue- Kruchina

Sunday 6th, 3.00pm - La fiancée vendue- Kruchina

It is Easter morning in a Sicilian village.  A sad, anxious girl, Santuzza, is looking for her lover Turridu, who betrayed her and went back to his former fiancée, Lola, who had meanwhile married the wealthy Alfio when he returned from the army. Santuzza tries in vain to win back her lover. Mad with jealousy, she tells Alfio, the cuckolded husband, about Lola and Turridu. At that point, Turridu’s fate is sealed. Alfio provokes him to a duel. After saying goodbye to his mother, Turridu leaves for his fatal meeting.

Dates in July:

Thursday 27h, 7.00pm -  Cavalleria Rusticana - Alfio

Saturday 29th, 6.00pm -  Cavalleria Rusticana - Alfio

Monday 31st, 7.00pm -  Cavalleria Rusticana - Alfio

At the Paris embassy of the Principality of Pontévédro, Baron Mirko Zeta and his wife Valencienne are giving a reception in honour of a rich Pontevedrian widow, Hanna Glawari, whom they would like  to see married off to one of her compatriots so that her late husband’s fortune will not leave the country. Count Danilo seems to be the ideal candidate, especially as Hanna is visibly taken with him. But in order to avoid her thinking that he is only attracted to the rich widow’s money, Danilo feigns indifference, until the unfolding of certain misunderstandings leads him to declare his love. Despite Danilo’s scruples, the wedding will take place, for the greater happiness of all. 

Dates in July:

Thursday 28th, 7.00pm - La Veuve Joyeuse- Kromov

Sunday 31th, 6.00pm - La Veuve Joyeuse- Kromov

Dates in August:

Wednesday 3nd, 7.00pm - La Veuve Joyeuse- Kromov

Saturday 6th, 6.00pm - La Veuve Joyeuse- Kromov

Germany, in the Middle Ages. Doctor Faust is an aging scholar who is tired of life and fantasizes about ending it all. Suddenly, Mephistophélès, the Devil himself, appears before him. He makes a pact with Faust, guaranteeing him eternal youth in exchange for his soul. Fascinated by an image of Marguerite that the Devil has produced to convince him, Faust goes off to seduce her. She offers little resistance to his sumptuous gifts and romantic ways. Méphistophélès, of course, does not fail to follow him and anticipate his every desire. Seduced and abandoned by Faust, Marguerite kills the child born of their union. Imprisoned for her crime, she gives her life to save her soul and succeeds despite the efforts of the Devil to make her - like Faust - his creature. (Opera-Online)

Dates in July:

Wednesday 27th, 7.00pm - Faust - Wagner

Saturday 30th, 6.00pm, Faust - Wagner

Dates in August:

Tuesday 2nd, 7.00pm - Faust - Wagner

Thursday 4th, 6.00pm, Faust - Wagner

La Traviata

The acclaimed company behind the Olivier Award nominated (‘Best New Opera, 2018’) production of La bohème present a radical reimagining of Verdi’s incendiary tale of sex, class and power, La Traviata. England, 2018. Violetta earns her crust dancing for the rich and powerful at an exclusive gentleman’s club until a chance meeting with naive and idealistic Elijah changes everything. The powerful collide with the powerless, with earth shattering consequences for all involved. Combining Verdi’s breathtaking music with a new English version from Becca Marriott and Helena Jackson, this is La Traviata exposed, uncovered and redefined for the twenty first century.

• Becca Marriott, Gemma Morsley, Oliver Brignall, Michael Georgiou (all 7pm unless specified otherwise) 29th Sept, 1st, 3rd, 5th, 6th, 9th, 11th, 13th (3.30), 15th, 17th, 19th, 20th, 23rd, 25th, 27th (3.30) October.

Die Fledermaus, Wilton's Music Hall

Eisenstein, his wife, maid, and his friends all end up at Prince Orlofsky's ball independently, in disguise, carrying their own deceits and motivations for being there. Others, too, have their reasons and everybody is looking to catch each other out for improprieties in a series of hilarious and touching assignations. As the characters are brought together in various guises, we set the scene for a hilarious story of mistaken identity full of splendour, posh frocks and masks.

Centred around the extravagant ball, the events of Die Fledermaus are set to a rich, romantic score by Johann Strauss II featuring some of the most irresistible melodies ever written for the stage. Strauss embellishes the opera with a vivid palette of waltzes, duets and orchestral pizazz that is hard to match. The operetta genre reached a pinnacle in Die Fledermaus and it is simply a wonderful way to spend an evening in the theatre.

Running time: 1hr 47mins, with a 20min interval

Tosca, The King's Head Theatre

Paris. August, 1944. As the Second World War rages on, lovers Tosca and Cavaradossi give refuge to a political prisoner and find themselves ensnared in the machinations of the tyrannical head of the Paris Gestapo, Scarpia. As Charles De Gaulle’s liberation movement advances and US troops tighten their net around the Nazi occupiers, everything Tosca holds dear is about to be torn apart.

A searing thriller of power and passion, this modern retelling takes the timeless tale and reimagines it at the heart of the twentieth century’s defining conflict. With stirring melodies and a brand-new libretto in English by Becca Marriott and Adam Spreadbury-Maher, performed in the intimate surroundings of the King’s Head Theatre, this is Tosca as you’ve never seen it before.