Heritage Opera is a professional touring opera company, that specialises in bringing the timeless beauty of opera and operetta to historic venues and theatres across the UK.
Heritage Opera is a professional touring opera company, that specialises in bringing the timeless beauty of opera and operetta to historic venues and theatres across the UK.
Since its founding in 2006, Heritage Opera has toured the length and breadth of the United Kingdom, bringing fully staged performances of great operas and chamber works to theatres, stately homes, churches, and heritage venues. The company’s mission has always been to make opera accessible, intimate, and affordable—performed by outstanding professional singers accompanied by chamber orchestra or piano, and presented in English translation.
Below is a (non-exhaustive) record of many of Heritage Opera’s past productions, from Mozart and Verdi to Jonathan Dove’s Mansfield Park. This archive celebrates nearly two decades of creative work, community partnerships, and performances in some of Britain’s most beautiful historic spaces.
We are still working to bring this as up to date and correct as possible.
2008 | Mozart — The Magic Flute (Die Zauberflöte) | Capesthorne Hall, Nether Alderley, Cheshire | 2 Aug 2008 | Cast included Sarah Helsby-Hughes (Queen of the Night); directed by Sarah Helsby-Hughes; produced by Chris Gill.
2010 | Mozart — Cosi fan tutte | Haigh Hall, Wigan, Lancashire | 15 Apr 2010 | English translation by Chris Gill (2006, rev. 2010).
2011 | Jonathan Dove — Mansfield Park (world premiere tour) | Ashton Hall, Lancaster Town Hall | 5 Aug 2011 | Part of July-Aug 2011 UK tour.
2011 | Bizet — Carmen (Autumn tour) | Haigh Hall, Wigan | 21 Oct 2011 | Piano + string quartet accompaniment.
2012 | Verdi — Rigoletto | Preston Minster | 13 Apr 2012 | Sung in English (translation by Sarah Helsby-Hughes).
2012 | Puccini — La Bohème | Haigh Hall, Wigan | 1 Nov 2012 | Touring production.
2013 | Rossini — The Barber of Seville | Lowther Pavilion, Lytham, Lancashire | 7 Jun 2013 | New English translation by Sarah Helsby-Hughes.
2014 | Puccini — Tosca | Nantwich Civic Hall | 18 Aug 2014 | Reviewed 20 Aug 2014.
2016 | Mozart — Don Giovanni (tour) | Example: Rye St. Antony School, Oxford (Rendall Hall) | 25 Jun 2016 | Tour date.
2016 | Verdi — La Traviata (tour) | Lowther Pavilion, Lytham, Lancashire | 9 Nov 2016 | Followed by venue: Marches School Theatre, Oswestry – 13 Nov 2016.
2017 | G&S – The Pirates of Penzance
2017 | Williams, Alan Edward – The Arsonists
Heritage Opera is proud to have collaborated with the English Pro Musica Orchestra (EPM), a distinguished professional ensemble founded in 2003 by Anthony Morgan. Based in central England, EPM performs in configurations ranging from chamber groups to full symphony-orchestra format and has built a reputation for stylish, adventurous programming of both premiere works and established classics. English Pro Musica
Since the revival of EPM in 2016 under the leadership of Peter Lacey (and now managed by Graham and Amanda Gill) the orchestra has strengthened its artistic reach, including opera, film & show-music projects, and nurturing the next generation of musicians. English Pro Musica
Within this context, our collaboration sees EPM accompany Heritage Opera in intimate, accessible productions of major operatic works such as Madame Butterfly, Così fan tutte, Carmen, The Magic Flute, and The Pirates of Penzance. These performances have taken place in heritage and historic venues throughout the UK — for example Bayham Old Abbey (Lamberhurst), Stafford Castle, and Gawsworth Hall. English Pro Musica
By combining Heritage Opera’s commitment to high-quality English-language productions in welcoming settings with EPM’s rich instrumental resources and adventurous repertoire, we are able to bring world-class opera to venues and audiences who might not otherwise encounter it. This partnership underpins our belief in making opera accessible, engaging, and of the highest artistic standard.