Opera Holland Park

Opera Holland Park is a summer opera company which produces an annual season of opera performances staged under a temporary canopy in Holland Park, a public park in a wealthy district of west central London of the same name. The venue is fully covered but is open at the sides.

The canopy was installed in 1988 and was initially used for a variety of music. Concerns about noise levels led to an increasing focus on opera from 1989, with productions staged by a variety of small opera companies. For the 2007 season, the theatre was expanded by the addition of a spectacular new canopy underneath which is new seating and other improved facilities. There are now 1,000 seats.

As part of a drive to improve artistic standards "Opera Holland Park" was established in 1996 to produce all future productions, and in recent years the company has enjoyed a long string of hits with major achievements in productions of more obscure repertoire such as Mascagni's Iris, Cilea's L'arlesiana, and many others. It is now considered one of the most accomplished non-state opera companies in the UK. The resident orchestra is the City of London Sinfonia.

Each season around half a dozen operas are staged. Most of them are well known classics but the company has developed a reputation for producing works from the verismo repertoire and a very adventurous production policy. They are sung in the original language and surtitling is used.

The venue and company are famed for a warm informality coupled with serious artistic intent and dedication. Pricing is determinedly accessible and the company even has a "Free Tickets for young people" scheme that offers 1200 free seats to people aged between 7 and 18 years old and nearly five hundred for those aged 60+. All of these tickets are for normal performances, not rehearsals.

Until October 2015, the company was a part of, and received financial backing from, the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, plus a number of corporate sponsors, including Investec Wealth & Investment, the season's title sponsor.

The company became an independent charity in October 2015, receiving a significant final grant settlement from The Royal Borough. A new board was installed, chaired by Charles Mackay CBE, former chairman of Historic Royal Palaces.

...
Wikipedia