Rogue Opera's vision is to bring opera out of traditional theatres into new spaces, opening up the world of opera to new audiences. Many of our performances are outdoors, with AV support. We work as a compact and collaborative team with all members equally valued.
COSÌ FAN TUTTE RE-IMAGINED
After the success of our 2024 Carmen Re-imagined production, Rogue Opera will be touring as part of Fuller’s Summer of Theatre this year with another Re-imagined show - Così fan tutte.
Rogue Opera’s re-imagining will bring a modern perspective to this classic opera of love, loyalty and deception - think Wolf of Wall Street meets Clueless. The production will be sung in Italian with a new English script replacing the recitative, with some creative cuts and dramatic re-interpretations. The production will balance the cynical manipulation and absurd mistaken identities, disguises and misunderstandings with a deeper exploration of human fallibility, delving into the dynamics of trust, attraction, desire and temptation. In our re-interpretation, Don Alfonso is a jaded misogynistic trader who makes the bet with his underlings, brothers Ferrando and Guglielmo. The fashionista sisters, Dorabella and Fiordiligi, are more concerned with the optics and social standing of their coupledom than with looking too closely below the surface of their relationships. The sisters' PA, Despina, initially going along with the farce for some much needed extra money, grows exasperated with the couples’ clichéd, saccharine notions of love. She tries to shock some sense into the sisters and school all four lovers to look beyond platitudes and societal expectations and examine their true desires and motivations.
Most shows are outdoor performances for Fuller’s Opera in the Garden series – in pub gardens in London, the Home Counties, Cotswolds, New Forest, Bristol and Bridport. We use DPA forehead mics and wireless transmitters, with an audio engineer to combat the inevitable outdoor acoustic challenges. We will be single cast with no chorus, with pianist, sung in Italian with English dialogue (not recitative).
We are looking for a Despina and a Guglielmo with strong, dynamic voices and excellent acting skills, to fit the ensemble and our dramatic re-interpretation.
Rehearsal Period: 14th May – 8th June.
- 9 days of rehearsals divided into 2, 3 and 4 day blocks (or some ½ days as necessary)
- The usual rehearsal blocks will be 10am – 6pm / 10am – 2pm / 2pm – 6pm
Tour Period: 9th June – 15th September.
- Approximately 30 – 35 performances over the above period
- Single cast with pianist (no chorus)
- Performances will be spaced throughout the tour period, with no more than 3 consecutive performances in one block. The show will run to approximately 3 hours including an interval
- The tour will be a combination of matinee and evening shows.
- Evening show call time: 5:00 pm for 7:30 pm show
- Matinee show call time: 12:00 pm for a 2:30 pm show
Please note: A large number of the shows are out of London, so a show may require an early morning or early afternoon departure from London and an overnight stay.
Auditions:
- Friday 28th February – 1 - 6 pm
- Saturday 1st March – 12 - 5pm
- Central London/Pimlico TBC
The audition will be a 20 minute slot. Please bring two Mozart arias, one of your character's arias or another similar in style; and one contrasting showpiece aria (any composer). There will also be some script work with our Director. The script will be provided and can be on copy.
Audition panel: Bronwen Stephens-Harding – Artistic Director, Bobbie Jean-Henning – Director, Kevin Harding – Producer.
(Guy Murgatroyd - Music Director - will be reviewing auditions remotely, so your audition will be recorded for this purpose). A pianist will be provided.
Fees:
- Rehearsal flat fee: £1080
- Show fee: £190 per show. Minimum fee for the tour (30 shows): £5700
- For shows outside London travel (in and out of London) and accommodation are booked and covered by the company. If you are not London based, then a travel contribution equivalent to the booked travel will be offered.
Availability
Final dates for the performances will be confirmed by the end of March and due to the length of the tour period, we have some flexibility to accommodate some N/As. We are unlikely to be able to accommodate long blocks of N/As.
We need to start our overall tour date allocation with the client by 3rd March, so you will need to provide your detailed N/As on the following application form to be offered an audition.