MEET THE CAST
Bronwen Stephens-Harding
Founder, Director and Scriptwriter
Mezzo-Soprano
At the age of eight, Bronwen declared her wish to be an opera singer. After a varied career, combining corporate marketing with busking, choral singing, opera performance and singing studies, she is now pursuing her dream full-time. After achieving a Diploma in Opera & Performance from Associated Studios in London and working in the UK and Europe, Bronwen founded Rogue Opera in 2018 with a vision of bringing opera to new audiences and unconventional spaces. As well as singing the title role in Rogue Opera’s inaugural season of Bizet’s Carmen, Bronwen directed the production and saw it performed in a variety of venues.
Working with a dedicated troupe of musicians and seeing her concepts come to life on the stage have been a high point in her musical career, which continued with the company’s second season, presenting a vibrant, contemporary reimagining of Mozart’s Don Giovanni in 2019, which Bronwen directed. In the second revival tour she also performed the role of Donna Elvira. The challenges presented by Covid-19 in 2020 have taken Bronwen and Rogue Opera into new ventures, broadcasting over 45 livestream performances and building an archive over 100 video performances of arias and ensembles, providing creative work for Rogue Opera artists and introducing new audiences to opera. Delighted to be back to in-person events, Bronwen has created, written the English libretto and directed this new production 'A Modern Opera Love Story' for Fuller’s Opera in the Garden.
Guy Murgatroyd
Music Director
Pianist
British pianist Guy enjoys a modest reputation as one of a leading generation of pianists pliable to many musical roles.
Having worked with diverse musicians, including Leslie Howard, Elly Ameling and Andrew Lloyd Webber, along with contemporary composers including Rolf Hind, Edward Rushton and Nikolai Kapustin, Guy is no stranger to most corners of the repertoire. He had a scholarship at Birmingham Conservatoire in 2012 and recently completed postgraduate studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London. Guy is also the founder and director of the London Art Song Collective which aims to further the performance of 20th century art song, an undervalued and untapped repertoire. The collective features over 50 singers, hand-chosen for various projects spanning over 450 composers and 25 languages.
Having assisted with Carmen in 2018, Guy took on full musical direction for Rogue Opera in 2019 and was integral to the company’s 2020/21 pandemic online program. Guy has the superhuman ability to fill in for a whole orchestra in Rogue Opera’s compact productions and is the essential fifth character in Fuller’s Opera in the Garden.
Philip Clieve
Tenor
British tenor Philip Clieve was born in Lancashire. He is a graduate of London's prestigious National Opera Studio and gained both his MMus and Bachelor degree from the Royal Northern College of Music.
Operatic roles include Max Der Freischütz, Alfred Die Fledermaus, Prince Philippe A Dinner Engagement, Gherardo Gianni Schicchi, Zorn Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Ralph H.M.S. Pinafore, The Defendant Trial by Jury, Mr Box Cox and Box and Colonel Fairfax Yeoman of the Guard. He has also performed many Oratorios, including Handel’s Messiah, the Mozart Requiem, Elijah Mendelssohn, Gloria Puccini, Petite messe solennelle Rossini, Magnificat J.S. Bach and The Crucifixion Stainer.
Philip enjoys a varied concert portfolio, having sung Strauss, Schubert and Schumann lieder, English song of the 19th and 20th century and the songs of Paolo Tosti.
Eleri Gwylim
Soprano
Welsh Soprano Eleri Gwilym graduated from Cardiff Law School before studying for a Master's degree at the Royal Academy of Music. Eleri has sung in the chorus of Trouble in Tahiti (Bloomsbury Opera), Hedd Wyn (WNO), Der Freuschütz under the baton of Sir Mark Elder (OAE), May Night (RAO), The Threepenny Opera (RAO), Dido and Aeneas (Royal Academy Early Music) and in the world premiere of Wythnos yng Nghymru fydd (OpraCymru) as well as singing the roles of Pamina in Die Zauberflöte, Cherubino in The Marriage of Figaro (Opera Cocktail), First Witch in MacBeth, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni (OpraCymru) and Prima Cercatrice in Suor Angelica (Berlin Opera Academy). Eleri has sung in the chorus at Buxton International Festival (Eugene Onegin) where she also covered the role of Papira in Lucio Papirio Dittatore and more recently in the Chorus of Opera Holland Park (La Traviata, Carmen, Hänsel und Gretel, Les Noces). Upcoming roles include Queen of the Night (Merry Opera Company) and featuring in the Opera-Movie Un nos Ola Leuad (Channel 4/S4C) which will be released next year.
Meilir Jones
Baritone
Originally from Llangefni, Anglesey, bass-baritone Meilir Jones graduated with Distinction in Masters from the Royal Academy of Music, studying with Richard Berkeley-Steele and vocal coaches Iain Ledingham and Ingrid Surgenor, and a First Class Honours, Bachelor of Music, from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.
Meilir has performed the roles of Sciarrone & Carceriere (Tosca) at the Abu Dhabi International Festival, Leporello (Don Giovanni) for Opra Cymru & Covent Garden Chamber Orchestra and Messenger in the first European staging of Handel’s Belshazzar for the Grange Festival while covering Figaro (Le nozze di Figaro) ,as well as Masetto (Don Giovanni) and Dancaïre (Carmen), both for Diva Opera. In 2023 he performed Alidoro (La Cenerentola) at Longhope Opera, and Le Caporal (La fille du régiment) and Soldato Marocchino (La Ciociara), both at Ireland’s National Opera House for Wexford Festival Opera. Meilir looks forward to being part of an European arena tour in an exciting new production of Verdi's Aida in 2024.
Solo concert highlights include the first performance of Handel’s Messiah at Wales Millennium Centre, Bryn Terfel’s Brynfest at Royal Festival Hall, the 25th London Welsh Festival of Male Choirs concert at Royal Albert Hall and performing as part of the WW1 Battle of Passchendaele centenary commemorations at Tyne Cot, Belgium which was broadcast globally.
Meilir has won several prizes including the Association of English Singers & Speakers Courtney Kenny Award, the International Medal for the under 21 vocal solo at Llangollen International Eisteddfod, the Blue Ribbon Osborne Roberts Memorial Prize for singers under twenty five years of age at the National Eisteddfod of Wales, and third prize at the Dame Patricia Routledge National English Song Competition. Meilir is a keen runner and used to be a competitive sprint hurdler throughout his teenage years.
William Kyle
Baritone
William Kyle is a British/Irish baritone based in London. He is a 2023 Nevill Holt Opera Associate Artist, a Rossini Opera Festival young artist and a member of the Wexford Factory.
This year, William has performed as Taddeo in the Wexford Festival Opera production of L’Italiana in Algeri, as Don Alvaro in the Rossini Opera Festival young artist production of Il viaggio a Reims and as Billy in Merry Opera Company’s touring production entitled Cinderella 23. He has previously performed as Page in British Youth Opera’s production of Sir John in Love and as Un ufficiale in Il barbiere di Siviglia for Nevill Holt Opera.
William is a graduate of the Royal Northern College of Music, where he performed roles including Il Conte in Le nozze di Figaro, Ein Musiklehrer in Ariadne auf Naxos and Harašta in The Cunning Little Vixen.
William is also an experienced oratorio soloist and won the 2023 Oratorio prize at the David Clover young singer’s Platform. His concert highlights include singing Peter in a semi-staged production of Bach’s Matthew Passion with RLPO, Messiah with Nevill Holt Opera in collaboration with Manchester Camerata and Brahms’ Requiem with Kantos Chamber Choir.
Natasha Page
Soprano
With a voice described as ‘lustrous’ (operatoday.com) and ‘with a glorious rich tone, soaring high notes and engaging manner’ (lightmusicsociety.com), British light-lyric soprano Natasha Page is a graduate of the Royal College of Music International Opera Studio. She is a Samling Artist, an Oxford Lieder Emerging Artist, a Making Music Philip and Dorothy Green Young Artist and a Leeds Lieder Young Artist. She was awarded First Place at the Maureen Lehane Vocal Awards 2023.
Natasha’s operatic roles include the title role in Rita and Bianca/Gabriella La Rondine (IfOpera), Fiordiligi Così fan tutte (Celebrate Voice Festival), covering Ismene Mitridate, Despina Così fan tutte and Adele Le Comte Ory (Garsington Opera), covering Semele Semele (Opera de Lille), Belinda Dido & Aeneas (Hurn Court Opera), Pamina Die Zauberflöte (RCMIOS), Clarice Il Mondo della Luna (RCMIOS), Cleopatra Julius Caesar (Kings Opera) and covering Soprano Medusa (Royal Ballet/Royal Opera House). Natasha has also worked with English National Opera.
Natasha’s concert work includes Handel’s Messiah (Chichester Cathedral, Southwell Cathedral), Mozart’s Requiem (Cadogan Hall, St John’s Smith Square), Mozart’s Mass in C Minor (Harrow School, Cadogan Hall), Bach’s Magnificat (Guildford Cathedral), Brahms’ Requiem (Chichester Cathedral, St Martin-in-the-Fields), and Mendelssohn’s Elijah (Christchurch Priory).
Martins Smaukstelis
Tenor
Martins Smaukstelis is a Latvian born tenor who completed his Master of Arts degree at the Royal Academy of Music with Neil Mackie and Jonathan Papp. He was awarded a full entrance scholarship, which was made possible by Leverhulme Trust Postgraduate Scholarship.
He had the opportunity to sing in public masterclasses with Dennis O’Neill at the Academy and Roger Vignoles at the Leeds Lieder Festival 2017.
Martins sang the role of the Distiller in Royal Academy Opera’s production of Rimsky-Korsakov’s opera May Night and sang in the chorus for Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin and Handel's Ariodante.
Recently Martins made his debut as Egisto in Cavalli's L'Egisto as well as Basilio and Don Curzio in Mozart's La Nozze di Figaro with Hampstead Garden Opera. He also performed the roles of Lucano, Soldier 1 and Littore for New Opera Singapore production of Monteverdi's L’incoronazione di Poppea.
In September Martins sang in Grimeborn Festival 2021 as Adrian in Hopes and fears, Debussy's music with new arrangement and libretto in English with The Opera Makers
As a part of Royal Academy of Music Opera Scenes he performed various roles including Ferrando from Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutte, Prunier from Puccini’s La Rondine and Nemorino from Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore.
Martins was an understudy for the role of Bergerac in Offenbach's Vert-Vert in Garsington Opera, as well as being in the chorus for Rossini’s Maometto II, Beethoven’s Fidelio, and Mozart’s Entführung aus dem Serail. He has also sung for the Glyndebourne Festival Opera in their productions of Donizetti’s Poliuto, Bizet’s Carmen, Janacek’s Cunning little vixen and Wagner’s Meistersinger von Nürnberg, and for Wexford Festival Opera in their Cherubini’s Medea and Foroni’s Margherita.
Martins also has a busy concert life and is appearing in oratorio performances all around the UK. Past performances include Mozart’s Requiem at St Martin-in-the-Fields and Mozart’s Coronation mass with the Buckingham Choral Society.
Martins is also generously supported by the Josephine Baker Trust, Drake Calleja Trust and Countess of Munster Musical Trust.
Rosamond Thomas
Mezzo-Soprano
Rosamond Thomas is a graduate of the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna, and the Royal Academy of Music in London. In 2023, she sang in the World Premiere of Sciarrino’s Venere e Adone for Staatsoper Hamburg. Rosamond has performed the role of Asteria in Gluck’s La Corona for Teatro Barocco in Burg Perchtoldsdorf, Dido in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas at the Universität (2021), Komponist in Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos (2021) and L’Enfant in Ravel’s L’Enfant et les sortilèges(2020) in Theater Schönbrunn and Sorceress (Dido) in the Ryedale Festival 2019. She sang with the Glyndebourne Chorus for the Festival and Tour in 2022.
Experienced on the concert platform, she has enjoyed performing as a soloist in oratorios including Handel’s Messiah and Israel in Egypt, Copland’s In the beginning, Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, Duruflé’s Requiem, Dvorak’s Stabat Mater and Mozart’s Mass in C Minor. Rosamond has a passion for song, with particular highlights including recitals in the Bösendorfer Salon and Gesellschaft für Musiktheater in Vienna. Rosamond was the winner of the Second Prize at Hurn Court Opera’s Singer of the Year in 2022.