A dazzling duo of operas is heading for the North-East stage. What's On finds out more

OPERA North is celebrating 40 years since it became established as the opera company for the North of England by bringing a compelling and visually dramatic new production of Tosca and a classic revival of The Merry Widow to the Newcastle Theatre Royal this autumn.

Opening at the theatre on Tuesday, October 23, is a new production of Puccini’s much-loved Italian melodrama, Tosca. Floria Tosca, Rome’s star opera singer, is passionately in love with charismatic artist Cavaradossi. When he helps a political prisoner to escape, Cavaradossi is arrested and tortured by Scarpia, the corrupt Chief of Police. Tosca, an object of fascination to Scarpia, does everything she can to save her lover, but the consequences are far worse than she could possibly imagine. From the jolting blast of Tosca’s opening chords, obsessive lust, politics, art and religion collide in this compelling thriller.

Following his 2017 production of Hansel and Gretel, Edward Dick returns to the Company to direct a production which makes the most of the opera’s strong contemporary resonances. The stellar cast includes Belfast-born soprano Giselle Allen (Cavalleria rusticana and Osud), Mexican tenor Rafael Rojas (Un ballo in maschera) and British baritone Robert Hayward (Andrea Chénier). A free pre-show talk will be held at 6.30pm before every performance for those keen to find out more about the music and plot.

Tosca’s tragedy is followed by a revival of Lehár’s light-hearted operetta, The Merry Widow. Hanna Glawari (Katie Bird) is a young, beautiful and stupendously wealthy widow visiting Paris. Would-be suitors clamour for her hand but the situation is not quite that simple. The fate of her home state of Pontevedro depends on the choice Hanna makes; if she marries a foreigner, Pontevedro will go bankrupt. Small wonder then that her arrival in France creates high excitement among the country’s bachelors - and many a sleepless night for the Pontevedrian ambassador, Baron Zeta, as he does everything he can to make sure she remarries a suitable, Pontevedrian, man.

Uniting Parisian sensuality with Viennese sophistication, The Merry Widow’s lushly glittering score is a riot of colour, elegantly whirling between can-can, galop and waltz. Director Giles Havergal’s stylish production is complemented by Leslie Travers’ fin-de-siècle set and costume designs while Kit Hesketh-Harvey’s witty English translation captures all the comedy and flair of this popular piece.

Richard Mantle, general director of Opera North, says: “Opera North’s purpose is to create extraordinary experiences every day, using music and opera to entertain, engage, challenge and inspire. In this, our 40th year, we seek to reinvigorate our incredible art form for the 21st century, and to share our work in new ways with more people across the whole of the North of England and beyond.”

For those who are undecided whether to try opera, Opera North’s free ‘pop-up’ version, Whistle Stop Opera, returns to the Lit & Phil in the city centre at 4pm on Monday 22 October. The half-hour crash course in opera provides a bite-sized introduction to four different works as a group of professional opera singers and an accordionist perform scenes and songs packed with comedy, deceit, love and tragedy. After the performance, there will be a chance to ask the cast about the production and opera more generally.

For younger members of the family, string players from the Orchestra of Opera North will be holding a special 45-minute Little Listeners concert for babies, toddlers and children under 7 at Seven Stories in Ouseburn Valley on Friday, October 26. The event is kept as relaxed as possible with the young audience welcome to move around as they wish and to get up close to the instruments. Tickets are £5 for both adults and children and are available from https://www.sevenstories.org.uk

n Opera North, Newcastle Theatre Royal, October 23-27. Tue 23 Oct -Tosca, 7.30pm; Wed 24 Oct - The Merry Widow, 7.30pm; Thu 25 Oct -Tosca, 7.30pm Audio-described; Fri 26 Oct - The Merry Widow, 7.30pm; Sat 27 Oct - Tosca,7.30pm. For tickets contact the Box Office: 08448 11 21 21 or online: www.theatreroyal.co.uk