Ariodante

James is General Director of ETO and has written original libretti for two operas and translations for three others, as well as several works of fiction.

Operatic work includes Katya Kabanova, Rusalka, Susannah, Eugene Onegin, Orfeo, Jenufa, Anna Bolena, Maria Stuarda, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, as well as Teseo and Alcina (ETO); Ariodante, Erismena, Flavio, The Cunning Little Vixen (ETO and OTC); The Marriage of Figaro (RCM and ETO); Tolomeo (London Handel Festival/ ETO); Tamerlano, Amadigi, Rodelinda, L’elisir d’amore, Katya Kabanova and The Rake’s Progress (OTC); Cinderella (De Vlaamse Opera/ Transparant); Don Giovanni (Canadian Opera Company); La Voix humaine (Teatro Nacional São João, Oporto); staging of Kurt Weill songs (Culturgest, Lisbon); La Spinalba (Casa da Musica, Porto), The Cunning Little Vixen (Moravian National Theatre, Brno).

Robin studied English Literature at Oxford University and completed the King’s Head Theatre’s trainee assistant director scheme. Directing credits include Best Man Speech (UK tour); Pick ‘n’ Myths (UK tour); Spirit of Vienna (ETO); Live Canon (Greenwich and Finborough Theatres); Happy Campers (site specific performances at Montagu Close); Pimpinone (Colourhouse Theatre); The Rover (Network Theatre). As associate director Robin has worked on Cloudcuckooland (UK tour); assistant director credits include Sweet Charity (Theatre Royal, Drury Lane); Katya Kabanova and Il Seraglio (ETO). Robin is a creative producer for Maya Productions and artistic director of Flat Earth Theatre, and also works as a performer and devisor for Big Wheel Theatre Company.

Benjamin Bayl is Music Director of Orchestra of the City and Saraband Consort, and was Assistant Conductor to Iván Fischer’s Budapest Festival Orchestra and Paul McCreesh’s Gabrieli Consort. He studied at King’s College Cambridge, NOS and RAM (MacKerras Scholarship). Recent engagements include conducting debuts with the RPO; Orlando (Opera Australia); Il mondo della luna (Opera East & Iford Festival); recording with Britten Sinfonia; a film of Don Giovanni. As assistant conductor he has worked in the opera houses of Sydney, Leeds, Paris, Strasbourg, Copenhagen, Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia. Future plans include concerts with Christchurch Symphony Orchestra; Orchestra Victoria; Norrlands Opera, Sweden. For ETO’s Spring 2010 season: Le nozze di Figaro and Don Pasquale.

Michael’s designs for opera include La bohème and Carmen (GFO); Rigoletto (ROH and Olivier Award nomination); Tosca and Alcina (ETO and Olivier Award Nomination); Fidelio (New Zealand International Art’s Festival in Wellington); Idomoneo (Antwerp De Vlaamse and Los Angeles Opera); Sweeny Todd (ON); The Turn of the Screw, Dido and Aeneas, Tosca and Jenufa (ETO). His designs for theatre include Comedy of Errors, Canterbury Tales and Macbeth (RSC); Bent (RNT); The Merchant of Venice (Galaxy Theatre, Tokyo); Cymbeline (Kneehigh Theatre/ RSC); Rapunzel (Kneehigh Theatre/ BAC); Blues in the Night (West Yorkshire Playhouse); Hamlet (English Touring Theatre); Ghosts (Plymouth Theatre Royal); Wind in the Willows (Bristol Old Vic); Blues for Mr. Charlie (Sheffield Crucible). Michael’s dance work includes Faeries (ROH).

Aideen was born in Dublin and trained in Dublin and London. Her opera engagements include Turn of the Screw, Le nozze di Figaro, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Cosi fan tutte, Mary Queen of Scotts, Jenufa and Tosca (all for ETO); Dialogues des Carmélites (RCM). In theatre, Aideen’s work has included Lighten Up, The Thought That Counts and In One Ear (Theatre Rites); Greed and Kiss My Echo (Clod Ensemble); Hirja and Dogs Barking (Bush Theatre); Coyote on a Fence (Royal Exchange Manchester/ West End). Aideen’s dance work includes A Compas (Paco Pena); Ether and Bhakti (Angika Dance Co.); Kaash and Polaroid Feet (Akram Khan Co.).

Rachel was born in Bedford and trained at RCM and York University. She received the President’s Rosebowl at the RCM and won 2nd prize at the Kathleen Ferrier Competition. Operatic roles include Armida/ Rinaldo (Edinburgh Festival); Nerone/ L’incoronazione di Poppea (New Theatre Tokyo); Dorinda/ Orlando (Atelier Lyrique de Tourcoing); Flora/ The Knot Garden (SO); Echo/ Ariadne auf Naxos (ROH). Concert engagements include Beethoven Mass in C (Bochum Symphony Orchestra); J.S. Bach Jauchzet Gott (OAE); Handel Messiah (Bach Collegium Japan). She has also made a number of recordings including J.S. Bach B Minor Mass (BIS); Handel Silla (SOMM); Hummel Mass in D Minor (CHANDOS); Dvorak Stabat Mater (BBC). In 2010, Rachel will perform Fiordiligi/ Cosi fan tutte (Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris).

Katherine studied at the RCM. Operatic credits include Arpago/ L’incoronazione di Dario (Garsington Opera); Fortune/ L’incoronazione di Poppea (ENO); Sandman/ Dew Fairy/ Hänsel und Gretel (ON); Musica/ Euridice/ L’Orfeo (ETO); Tullia/ Virginia (Opera Rara recording) and Partenope/ Partenope (Les Azuriales). Recent engagements include Venus/ Venus and Adonis (Transition Opera); Belinda/ After Dido (ENO/ The Young Vic); Jephtha for The King’s Consort in Switzerland and Israel in Egypt on tour with Musik Podium Stuttgart.
Engagements in 09/10 include Dafne/ Apollo e Dafne and cantata Selete Venti (Retrospect Ensemble, Wigmore Hall); Handel Messiah (Ulster Orchestra/ Waterfront Hall, Belfast); St. Matthew Passion (Bath Abbey); Helena/ A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Garsington Opera). Subsequent engagements include Lucia/ The Rape of Lucretia (Angers/ Nantes Opera).

Anne Marie studied in Dublin and RNCM supported by the Peter Moores Foundation. Opera roles include Dorabella/ Cosi fan tutte, Anna/ Ascanius/ The Trojans at Carthage, Ino/ Semele, Sister Mathilde/ The Dialogue of the Carmelites, Pitti-Sing/ The Mikado, Flora/ La traviata, Bacchis/ La belle Hélène, Nero/ Agrippina, Kasturbai/ Satyagraha and Annio/ La clemenza di Tito (ENO);  Ariodante and La Cenerentola (OTC); Siegrune/ Gutrune/ Der Ring des Nibelungen (Limerick/ Birmingham); Pippo/ The Thieving Magpie (ON); Peter Eötvös/ As I Crossed the Bridge of Dreams (Almeida Opera); Anna/ Maria Stuarda (Chelsea Opera Group); Second Lady/ The Magic Flute (WNO); Rosmira/ Partenope (Les Azuriales Festival, France). Recordings include Elvida and Il diluvio universale (Opera Rara); The Dialogue of the Carmelites and Italian Girl in Algiers (CHANDOS).

Nathan was the winner of the 2006 London Handel Singing Competition, where he was also awarded the Audience Prize. He recently graduated from the BBIOS, RCM.
Nathan’s operatic engagements have included Pedrillo/ Die Entführung aus dem Serail (Surrey Opera); Nencio/ L’infedeltà delusa (Bampton Cassical Opera); First Prisoner/ Fidelio and cover Evangelist St Matthew Passion (GFO). At the BBIOS he has sung
Nerone/ L’incoronazione di Poppea and Alessandro/ Poro, rè dell’Indie. He made his debut with ENO in L’incoronazione di Poppea. Recent concerts include Handel Messiah (Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano and Sir Neville Marriner); Evangelist, Bach St. Matthew Passion (Northern Sinfonia); concerts with Les Arts Florissant.

Andrew studied at RNCM and St Petersburg Conservatoire. Opera roles include Patsy Love Counts (Almeida Festival); The House of the Gods (Music Theatre Wales); Leporello Don Giovanni (BOC); Falstaff Falstaff (ETO); Ben Selim Dom Sebastien (ROH). Recent concerts include Verdi Requiem (RLPO); Brahms Requiem (RTE Orchestra Dublin); Britten War Requiem (Orchestra de l’Ile de France). Recordings include Michael Berkeley Jane Eyre (Chandos); Stravinsky The Flood (Twentieth Century Classics); Mozart The Marriage of Figaro (BBC TV).