It all started when…
Back in early 2013, after some brainstorming for fundraising ideas for the refurbishment of St Paul’s Church Clapham, the then vicar, Rev Deborah Matthews, together with parishioner Patricia Ninian and Jennifer McGregor internationally revered soprano (and Patricia’s singing teacher), took the brave leap of faith and started work on producing a one-off opera at the church.
The first production was to be ‘Gianni Schicchi’, Puccini’s one-act ‘verismo’ comic opera, accompanied by Mozart’s ‘Der Schauspieldirektor’. Jennifer would direct and Patricia sing. Other singers were cast from both Morley College’s Opera Performance Course (Patricia being an alumna) and Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
The first production was a sell-out, with an enthusiastic audience of local opera lovers and the cast’s family and friends, enjoying the unique inner-city experience of a picnic opera with the benefit of the beautiful gardens of St Paul’s Church.
The opera bug had well and truly struck at St Paul’s. As a result there has been a summer picnic production for the following years till the present.
Deborah and Jennifer have both since departed from the core team of St Paul’s Opera, but Patricia remains as the founder and face of St Paul’s Opera.
Our Mission
From the outset we have had a clear mission to offer accessible opera to our loyal and constantly increasing number of audience and supporters, as well as providing a home of opportunity to young aspiring professional singers, whilst not forgetting more mature singers for roles where their experience provides credibility to the production.
All productions are sung in the original language – a rarity for opera productions of a similar scale and an invaluable experience for a young singer’s cv.
The auditioning and resulting rehearsal process is rigorous, with thorough musical preparation, language coaching and acting workshops ensuring each character is embedded into the psyche of the singer.
In more recent years, we have appointed a small group of instrumental musicians to accompany each performance, lending a charming chamber character to the total experience.
Each opera performance has also been fully staged, no mean feat, requiring total transformation from ‘church to theatre’, and returning the space to the regular worship space after the final curtain falls.
Annual Programme
We run events throughout the year. Our summer opera festival takes place typically late June / early July when the church is transformed into a theatre and the grounds are filled with gazebos for our audience to picnic before and during the performance.
During the autumn our singers return to present an opera gala. December is the time for our Christmas concert, and during the spring we stage an oratorio celebration.
And of course, we are very honoured to welcome internationally renowned tenor, David Butt Philip, to run the increasingly popular Masterclass for the SPO singers
Please explore our website to find out more of our past productions for details of these events.
How we operate
On a day to day basis, our core team is entirely voluntary, taking care of essential housekeeping such as:
· Close integration with St Paul’s Church (vicar, admin, PCC)
· Recruiting and liaising with creative teams for all productions
· Communications, particularly with our database audience and social media
· Ticketing and marketing
· Clapham community liaison
· Sponsorship and funding
· Front-of-house team management
Key Personnel
Patricia Ninian – Founder and Producer
Ashley Pearson - Artistic Director
Matthew Carter – Treasurer and website admin
Susan Roberts – Chorus co-ordinator
Tony Bell – Subscriptions and local marketing
Non-exec committee: Fr Jonathan Boardman
We are always happy to welcome people who are looking for voluntary hands-on involvement in these disciplines so please do contact us on info@stpaulsopera.org if you have relevant skills to offer.