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Eugene Onegin – second night – Wednesday 13th July 2011
And we have our first review!!! Also Tony Stewart our photographer has blogged about the process of photographing the opera, and said some very nice things about us. I’ve been reading the programme, conveniently left behind by our guests, and I am amazed at the first degrees, and indeed first careers our principals and soloists have…
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Eugene Onegin – 1st Night Tuesday 12th July 2011
The hours running up to first night can be quite nerve racking, but this year it coincides with my 50th Birthday, so I have plenty of distractions. Our dear friends Tonnie and Kate (Foley) are over from Amsterdam. K & T are big fans of Blackheath Halls Community Opera, and came over for Orpheus & Eurydice…
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Eugene Onegin – 2nd Dress Rehearsal
Sunday: It’s interesting, having looked at Tony’s photos I’m more aware of how our ‘acting’ looks from the outside: who is doing a really good job, who relies on eye rolling and mugging, who doesn’t seem to be acting at all. Adapt our output regulators accordingly. A and I spend quite a lot of time (usually…
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Eugene Onegin – 1st Dress Rehearsal
Saturday afternoon: We bring Tony, the photographer, with us and arrive an hour early, and leave him in Rose’s care. I haul my three alternative jackets for Act III up to the changing room. It’s already hot and sweaty up in the recital room where we are changing into our Act I costumes. We are in…
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Eugene Onegin – 2nd full run through
Thursday: the second full run through, except it isn’t quite; we have the marvellous Duncan Robertson instead of the orchestra, and Nick Jenkins has to conduct us backstage for our first entrance, and then run back across stage to his podium… but we are missing Simon Marsh our lead peasant, so Nick has to sing us in; after a…
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Eugene Onegin – 1st full run through
Wednesday: and the orchestra and the children from Brooklands School are here for the first full run through. I’ve decided not to take any more pictures while we are working as I must concentrate, so today’s pictures are from earlier rehearsals! For our first entrance we start singing while still off stage, (ie crushed into…
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Eugene Onegin – Sitzprobe
One of my fellow chorus members kindly explained what sitzprobe actually means. I assumed it was some kind of abbreviation that was lost in the mists of time, but it turns out it’s German and means ‘sitting rehearsal’ not terribly accurate, but at any rate standing still rehearsal. Back in the Halls (hurrah) and I’m…
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The Blackheath Onegin: Backstage at a Community Opera
Coming Soon (Late August probably) The Blackheath Onegin Backstage at a Community Opera By Cherry Potts 80 pages of comment and photographs £15 All profits will go to next year’s Blackheath Halls Opera If you pre-order, we hope to have enough orders to get a bulk discount, which means that, provided you are prepared to…
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Rinaldo – but no sea-serpents
Straight from Opera rehearsal, to watching Opera, at Blackheath Halls, this time a production from Trinity Laban. Home from home you’d think, (and we are considering getting camp beds put up in the recital room we are there so much) but nonetheless it required a gear change. I’m not familiar with Rinaldo, and we were in…
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Eugene Onegin – 5th Production Rehearsal
The second of our back to back rehearsals. Saturday afternoon, and we have added Andrew Greenan as Gremin, to our principals. We at last get a proper go at Act III and Stella and the dancers from Laban Youth Dance are back to present a divertissement at Gremin’s society party. Harry explains that this is a very cold, brittle, affair;…
Cherry Potts, Writer, Editor, creative writing tutor; Lesbian, cat-mother, would-be singer. Any of these can crop up here.
Cherry Potts, Writer 