Grange Park Opera… a must-do summer event

I’ve always been a bit of an opera naysayer – I put it down to being dragged to see Hansel & Gretel by Engelbert Humperdinck at the Lincoln center in New York in the midst of a winter storm. It was mind-numbingly dull as I recall, and with the fear of being stranded in a snowbound city all night looming over the tortuously long performance, it made it an evening I did not want to repeat. So when I got offered the chance to head to the opening night of the famous Grange Park Opera season I was slightly skeptical, until my hosts threw in the magic words ‘arrive in a classic car’ and ‘drink fizz in the sun’  and things began looking up

There are definitely key elements to attending any summer event which make it sink or swim, so here are my top tips which I gleaned on the gloriously sunny evening.

1. Always arrive in a classic car.

I hadn’t really appreciated the phrase ‘it’s better to travel than to arrive’ until I stepped into our ride for the night… this classic convertible Bentley – simply divine.

Wrapped up with scarves around our heads in an homage to Isadora Duncan, we were whisked down the A31 to the magnificent Grange Park Opera venue.

2. Ensure there is plenty of fizz and a gob-smackingly yum picnic to keep energy levels up for the hearty clapping required after each act.

3. Dress in a dapper manner to suit the illustrious surroundings.

4. Don appropriate paparazzo repelling shades for the dual purpose of repelling said, paparazzo when you arrive center stage in your classic car; as well as surreptitious people watching whilst you sip your champagne during the interval.

5. Get a peek at the amazing art installation by Alexander Creswell inside the dining rooms at Grange Park Opera. If you can get the artist to give you a personal tour, then you’ve definitely lucked out.

The walls of the near derelict innards of the main house have been transformed into an elaborate fresco of an elegant country mansion by Creswell, with his vast paintings depicting rooms, corridors and alcoves beyond the ones you are sitting in. With some clever jiggery-pokery artwork, you really feel like you have been whipped into a time machine and transported back to having dinner in the house in its heyday.

So what of the opera?

We saw Bryn Terfel in Fiddler on the Roof on his opening night. It was stunning and I knew all the words to the songs. So the upshot is I really enjoyed it… having a fellow Welshman performing didn’t sway me in the least, and I will definitely head back next year.

Grange Park Opera…what’s the scoop?

Grange Park Opera was founded in 1998 and plays host to an amazing array of musical talent each season. It runs for seven weeks each year bringing four productions to the stage through the festival period.

Grange Park itself is a building in an elegantly ruinous state, with the opera being housed in a theater built in the old orangery. With an early start, opera goers mingle around the champagne bar and grab a quick canape or two before the bell is tolled for the first act. You get a lovely long break in the middle for dinner or picnic and then it’s back in for the second half.

Check out their 2015 offerings and how to buy tickets here.