From the General Manager

Welcome to another exciting year of "alternative opera". .

Our plans this year embrace new experiences that show what a remarkable journey
we have travelled in 15 years of touring regional Australia and building connections
with budding opera performing communities in SE Asia
.
A comprehensive itinerary of Magic Flute performances in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland gets the year off to an early start... 26 performances presented by the first week of April.

After two "auf Wiedersehn" performances in Adelaide, in May we are off to make our first appearances in Europe. The opera management of the Hessischestaatstheater in Wiesbaden has invited Co-Opera to perform in the celebrated May Festival '09 and show to German audiences The Magic Flute production that, in three national tours, has travelled tens of thousands of kilometres in the Australian Outback to present the joys of Mozart to seriously remote opera-loving communities.

Per favour of Melbourne-based, generous Co-Opera Sponsor-Benefactor, Hans Henkell, our two Wiesbaden performances will be followed by another five performances across Germany and into Switzerland.

Whilst we are in Europe, the immensely successful Friends of Co-Opera December 2008 production of Highlights of The Pirates of Penzance will be modified for presentation to schools' audiences under the guiding influence of the project's single-handed originator, Andrew Turner. Andy and wife, Joanna McWaters will also develop the first of the 2009 Friends Concerts in April, a program of favourite Italian operatic arias and ensembles entitled simply, Bellissimo.

Melbourne-based Karma Nordqvist (Flora) LaTraviata Darwin 2008 Photo John Eleanor

Following a jam-packed first half of the year, there is no shortage of offerings in the second. The Friends Concert series, under the indefatigable leadership of Libby Ellis, resumes with Highlights of Carmen performances in September and a Barber of Seville season in December. In between, if we are successful in gaining supplementary Australia Council funding, we will co-ordinate the world première performance season of a jazz cantata entitled The Stargazers. The result of a creative collaboration between two South Australians, Noel Fidge, composer and Robert Kimber, librettist, this project will come to performance fruition under another collaboration, this time between Co-Opera and musicians from the Jazz Department of the Elder Conservatorium.

So, there are vocal delights aplenty in 2009. You can enjoy them concurrently with high class cuisine in some of our venues or you can Bring Your Own food and beverages to an old fashioned, strictly affordable Co-Opera cabaret style event in our beloved home at the Adelaide Showgrounds.

Something for everyone. We look forward to seeing you.

Brian Chatterton
General Manager and Musical Director