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Spin

ETO’s fourth project aimed at young people with profound learning difficulties, generously supported by the Equitable Charitable Trust.

Spin is a brand new opera for young people with severe learning difficulties, and continues our unique strand of this kind of work, supported by the Equitable Charitable Trust. This is our fourth such opera, the last two of which also travelled to the Philharmonie in Luxembourg.

The story of Spin follows the course of an extraordinary day, from breakfast to bedtime, with the events that happen in between at work and at play.

The opera is highly interactive, using sound, imagery, smell, touch and colour to engage and delight mixed audiences. It is performed to small audiences (maximum 30, including adults) to ensure maximum participation.

Spin was funny, frenetic, fantastic. All NSC students were engaged and interacted with the show. One student said afterwards that it was the best thing he had ever seen. It was life skills, functional skills, drama and music all wrapped in to an hour of entertainment and interaction. Loved it!

— Teacher, National Star College, Cheltenham

The music is by Rachel Leach, and is performed by four ETO artists from the Spring 2013 ensemble and orchestra. It is travelling to all of ETO’s touring venues, performing mainly in the halls of special schools, most of which are long-term ETO partners.

Showing At

  1. Strathmore School, London
    7th Mar 2013 - 10:30 am
  2. Nether Hall School, Leicester
    12th Mar 2013 - 10:45 am
  3. Woodlands Meed School, Burgess Hill
    14th Mar 2013 - 2:00 pm
  4. Gosden House School
    15th Mar 2013 - 10:45 am
  5. Ellen Tinkham, Exeter
    20th Mar 2013 - 1:45 pm
  6. Hall School, Norwich
    25th Mar 2013 - 11:00 am
  7. Penn Hall School, Wolverhampton
    16th Apr 2013 - 10:00 am
  8. Peak School, Chinley
    25th Apr 2013 - 2:00 pm
  9. National Star College, Cheltenham
    1st May 2013 - 11:30 am
  10. Bettridge School, Cheltenham
    2nd May 2013 - 10:30 am
  11. Manor School, London
    13th May 2013 - 1:30 pm
  12. Churchill Theatre, Bromley
    14th May 2013 - 10:30 am
  13. Churchill Theatre, Bromley
    14th May 2013 - 1:30 pm
  14. Castle School, Cambridge
    24th May 2013 - 10:00 am
  1. Strathmore School, London — 7th Mar 2013 - 10:30 am

    Meadlands Drive, Petersham, Richmond, TW10 7ED

  2. Nether Hall School, Leicester — 12th Mar 2013 - 10:45 am

    Netherhall Road, Leicester, LE5 1DT

  3. Woodlands Meed School, Burgess Hill — 14th Mar 2013 - 2:00 pm

    Chanctonbury Road, Burgess Hill, RH15 9EY

  4. Gosden House School — 15th Mar 2013 - 10:45 am

    Bramley, Nr Guildford, GU5 0AH

  5. Ellen Tinkham, Exeter — 20th Mar 2013 - 1:45 pm

    Hollow Lane, Exeter, EX1 3RW

  6. Hall School, Norwich — 25th Mar 2013 - 11:00 am

    St Faith's Road, Old Catton, Norwich, NR6 7AD

  7. Penn Hall School, Wolverhampton — 16th Apr 2013 - 10:00 am

    Vicarage Road, Penn, Wolverhampton, WV4 5HP

  8. Peak School, Chinley — 25th Apr 2013 - 2:00 pm

    Buxton Road, Chinley, Derbyshire, SK23 6ES

  9. National Star College, Cheltenham — 1st May 2013 - 11:30 am

    Ullenwood, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, GL53 9QU

  10. Bettridge School, Cheltenham — 2nd May 2013 - 10:30 am

    Warden Hill Road, Cheltenham, GL51 3AT

  11. Manor School, London — 13th May 2013 - 1:30 pm

    Chamberlayne Road, Kensal Rise, London, NW10 3NT

  12. Churchill Theatre, Bromley — 14th May 2013 - 10:30 am

    High Street, Bromley, Kent, BR1 1HA

  13. Churchill Theatre, Bromley — 14th May 2013 - 1:30 pm

    High Street, Bromley, Kent, BR1 1HA

  14. Castle School, Cambridge — 24th May 2013 - 10:00 am

    Courtney Way, Cambridge, CB4 2EE

Cast

Hannah Sawle

Hannah Sawle

Soprano

Hannah Sawle studied at Chethams School of Music, the Guildhall School of Music and Drama supported by an MBF and Sir Richard Stapeley Scholarship and on English National Opera’s Opera Works Course supported by the Nicolas Boas Charitable Trust. She is currently studying with John Evans.

Whilst at Guildhall she won awards for her English and Contemporary Song and she has been a guest soloist on BBC World Service, Radio 3 and Radio 4 and has been a guest recording artist for the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra.

Roles have included Slim Girl (A Village Romeo and Juliet), Lady Dunmow (A Dinner Engagement) and Trio Soprano (Trouble in Tahiti) all for Wexford Opera, Nedda (Pagliacci) and Mademoiselle Silberklang for Garden Opera, Fiordiligi (Cosi fan tutte) for Jackdaws, Pamina (Die Zauberflote), Adina (L’elisir d’amore) and Elletra (Idomeneo) all for Hampstead Garden Opera and created the role of Ruth (A Fountain Sealed) conducted by the composer, Nathan Williamson.

Nicholas Merryweather

Nicholas Merryweather

Baritone

Sheffield born, Nicholas Merryweather studied modern languages at University College, London, before training at the Musikhochschule, Köln and on the opera course at GSMD. He was the winner of the Glyndebourne Wessex Award in 2008 and a semi-finalist in the Kathleen Ferrier Award in 2009. Nicholas’s operatic roles include Don Giovanni/ Don Giovanni and Figaro/ Le Nozze di Figaro (Longborough Festival Opera); cover Morales/ Carmen (GOT); Papageno/ The Magic Flute (BYO); Starveling/ A Midsummer Night’s Dream (ETO). Recent concert engagements include Schubert Schwanengesang (Oxford Lieder Festival) and Carmina Burana (Plymouth Philharmonic Choir). He was the soloist on the World Premiere recording of Karl Jenkins’s Armed Man Mass for Peace.

Your musicians were great with the pupils and really appeared to enjoy performing to them and interacting with them. It was also great that all our KS2 pupils could access a professional production as your musicians were not put off by the noisier pupils or those who wandered into the performing area from time to time. It was well-paced, fun, used a frequently changing variety of props that the pupils could recognise (e.g. milk and coco pops!) and was just the right length to keep them engaged – including some who we wouldn’t necessarily have expected to manage the whole performance.

— Teacher, Strathmore School, Richmond

The kids loved how interactive it was and the cast were brilliant at spotting just the right children to interact with an any moment. The level of repetition and pitch of the storyline was perfect for them and they had a brilliant time. What a lovely experience! Even the littlies that I envisaged leaving mid-performance sat throughout and were quite possibly ‘top responders’, we had some brilliant surprise ‘responders’ too which just goes to show that stepping outside the box is so incredibly valuable. It’s a precious treat to find something specially created for our type of audience and we don’t want to miss any future opportunities!

— Teacher, Mayfield School, Devon

Showing At

  1. Strathmore School, London
    7th Mar 2013 - 10:30 am
  2. Nether Hall School, Leicester
    12th Mar 2013 - 10:45 am
  3. Woodlands Meed School, Burgess Hill
    14th Mar 2013 - 2:00 pm
  4. Gosden House School
    15th Mar 2013 - 10:45 am
  5. Ellen Tinkham, Exeter
    20th Mar 2013 - 1:45 pm
  6. Hall School, Norwich
    25th Mar 2013 - 11:00 am
  7. Penn Hall School, Wolverhampton
    16th Apr 2013 - 10:00 am
  8. Peak School, Chinley
    25th Apr 2013 - 2:00 pm
  9. National Star College, Cheltenham
    1st May 2013 - 11:30 am
  10. Bettridge School, Cheltenham
    2nd May 2013 - 10:30 am
  11. Manor School, London
    13th May 2013 - 1:30 pm
  12. Churchill Theatre, Bromley
    14th May 2013 - 10:30 am
  13. Churchill Theatre, Bromley
    14th May 2013 - 1:30 pm
  14. Castle School, Cambridge
    24th May 2013 - 10:00 am

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