The Elixir of Love

We are so excited to be working with this brilliant group of people this autumn on the Research & Development period of our brand new adaptation of Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love. Director/librettist Joanna Turner has been hard at work cutting, pasting, rewriting the story and updating the libretto (words) of the opera for London life today while composer Leo Geyer has been busy rewriting the music from full orchestra to 3 instruments suitable for promenade performance – our classic combo of violin, accordion & bassoon! And designer Marina Hadjilouca and Joanna have started discussing what these characters and the world they live in will look like. Now the cast have the new score and we’re excited to be exploring it with them in rehearsal this autumn and sharing some of our work with some of our friends and community partners. We’re delighted to be working some new people as well as welcoming back some friendly faces!

Welcome to our brilliant team!

Abigail Kelly – Adina

Born and raised in Birmingham, Abigail studied at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire graduating with a first class honours degree and continued her studies at the Royal Scottish Conservatoire of Scotland.

Abigail’s operatic roles include Susanna and Barbarina (The Marriage of Figaro – Mozart) English Touring Opera (ETO), Pamina (The Magic Flute – Mozart) Opera Up Close, Ninetta (La Gazza Ladra – Rossini) Midland Opera, Fido (Paul Bunyan – Britten) ETO, Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro – Mozart) Opéra de Baugé, First Boy (The Magic Flute – Mozart) ETO, First Lady (The Magic Flute – Mozart) Opera Minima, Despina (Così fan tutte – Mozart) ETO, Naiad (Rusalka – Dvořák) ETO, Cobweb (A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Britten) ETO and Adele (Die Fledermaus – Strauss)Baseless Fabric Theatre.

Digital performances since 2020 have included an operatic recital aimed for younger audiences for the Royal Albert Hall as part of their Royal Albert Home series; Shh! we have a plan, an operatic version of the children’s book by Chris Haughton with music by composer Noah Moseley (ETO); For OperaUpClose Abigail performed the title role of Sammy in Sammy and the Beanstalk, written by Robin Norton-Hale and composed by Rosabella Gregory; UNSEEN a performance project commissioned by Streetwise Opera with music by John Barber in collaboration with Streetwise Opera performers from across the UK.

Abigail directed the children’s show How to Find Your Name for ETO which toured the UK in the Spring 2022 season tour. She has subsequently directed devised performances for Turtle Key Arts and the YAM Award winning children’s opera The Wish Gatherer for ETO. This year Abigail directed part of a song cycle by Cassie Kinoshi and lydia luke for Birmingham Opera Company as part of their ‘Brum Commissions’ project and was festival Director for Streetwise Opera’s Re:Discover season.

Jonathan Cooke – Nemorino

Born and raised in Cheshire, versatile tenor Jonathan Cooke enjoys a varied singing career both in England and abroad. He studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and has worked with some of the country’s biggest opera companies including Garsington, Scottish Opera, Grange Park Opera, Longborough Festival Opera and West Green House Opera.

Jonathan’s operatic rôles include divers characters such as Ruggero La Rondine (RCS), Le Mari Les Mamelles de Tiresias (RCS), Eisenstein die Fledermaus (Fulham Opera, Baseless Fabric), Squeak Billy Budd (St Endellion Summer Music Festival), Turridu, Cavalleria Rusticana (Hampstead Garden Opera, North Wales Opera Studio) Cavaradossi Tosca (Bridgetower Ensemble Opera, North Wales Opera Studio) and Lensky Eugene Onegin (Opera South East).

Outside of opera, and amongst other things, Jonathan is privileged to sing for Songhaven, a dementia-friendly concert series.

Pre-lockdown in 2020, Jonathan sang the rôle of Pinkerton in Opera Up Close’s tour of Madam Butterfly. During the pandemic, with performing opportunities sparse, he still managed to perform in socially-distanced performances of Tristan und Isolde, Tosca, and Carmen. Most recently, Jonathan returned to Kentish Opera to sing the title rôle in The Tales of Hoffmann.

Jack Holton – Belcore

Actor and baritone actor Jack Holton trained at GSMD and National Opera Studio, and is a Young Artist with Opera Prelude and the Musicians Company.

Jack is currently playing Julian (alternate) The Fabulist at Charing Cross Theatre.

Recent roles include Fiorello The Barber of Seville and Captor Tosca at Opera Holland Park, Henri The Runaway Royal and Guglielmo (cover) Così fan tutte at Opera North, Guglielmo Così fan tutte for Baseless Fabric, and Count Ribbing Un Ballo in Maschera for Chelsea Opera Group. Other roles include Renato Un Ballo in Maschera, Eugene Onegin, Silvio I Pagliacci, Don Giovanni and Sky Masterson Guys & Dolls.

In Spring 2025 will cover the roles of Ned Keane Peter Grimes and Count Almaviva Le nozze di Figaro at Opera North.

Jack is represented by Musichall Ltd

Alistair Sutherland – Dulcamara

A graduate from The Royal Academy of Music, Alistair was selected as a 2012 young artist with Opera Holland Park. He continues to work with OHP as a chorister and comprimario performing roles such as Second Yeoman (The Yeoman of the Guard) or Pinellino (Gianni Schicchi).

He has worked with a number of smaller touring companies, creating roles for OperaUpClose such as Schaunard (La bohème), Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro) and Dulcamara (L’elisir d’amore). Other roles include Nick Shadow (The Rake’s Progress), Smirnov (The Bear), Michele (Il Tabarro), Des Grieux (The Portrait of Manon), Sam (Trouble in Tahiti) and Bluebeard (Bluebeard’s Castle).

Alistair works regularly with organisations such as OHP Inspire, The Music Mind Spirit Trust, and Songbird incorporating music into therapeutic settings for a variety of needs. He leads regular sessions at King’s College Hospital, as well as performing for a number of care-home groups leading dementia aware song-groups, and he runs folk- music ensemble in South London.

www.alistairsutherland.com

Louisa Till – Violin

Louisa is an active violinist and teacher based in London. She studied at the Royal Northern College of Music with Cecily Ward, James Clark and Pavel Fischer, gaining both BMus and MMus degrees. 

At the RNCM, Louisa participated in projects with the BBC Philharmonic, Manchester Camerata and Chamber Orchestra of Europe, as well as touring internationally to Paris and Montepulciano in Italy. 

Since moving to London, Louisa has enjoyed performing with the London Mozart Players and with Baseless Fabric Theatre, for a re-imagined production of Bizet’s Carmen. She also has a keen interest in musical theatre and has performed at the London Palladium for concert performances of Camelot and Dr Zhivago. 

Louisa is passionate about her work as an educator and for the past two years has worked for Music Masters, a charity which provides access to music education for primary school children in London.

Ilona Suomalainen – Accordion

Originally from Helsinki, Finland, Ilona Suomalainen graduated with a Masters degree from the Royal Academy of Music in 2017, studying under professor Owen Murray. Since then, she has gone on to establish a varied and diverse career as a freelance accordionist in the UK, with recent projects including work with the Philharmonia Orchestra, Aurora Orchestra, Opera Holland Park and Birmingham Opera Company. Outside of classical music, she regularly performs with the Israeli pop-jazz singer Irit Dekel, most recently supporting Caro Emerald and Lisa Stansfield on their respective UK nationwide tours.

Before moving to London, Ilona graduated from the Sibelius-Academy in Helsinki with a MMus degree studying with professors Matti Rantanen, Veli Kujala and Mika Väyrynen. In 2006, she won first-prize in the Finnish National Youth Accordion Competition and with her accordion trio, BCH, won the Chamber Music, Accordion Orchestra and Overall categories at the 2011 International Accordion Competition in Pula, Croatia. The trio also received the prize for the highest points ever awarded in the competition’s history.

A passionate teacher and educator, Ilona currently teaches accordion at the International School of London and privately across London. As part of her studies at the Sibelius-Academy, she also undertook an intensive course in specialised pedagogical training, which qualifies her to teach in educational institutions from pre-school to university.

Leo Geyer – Arranger/MD/Bassoon

Born in London of Anglo-Indian descent, Leo Geyer is a young composer, conductor, and presenter. He enjoys a busy and diverse career composing and conducting opera, dance, film, and concert music. He has established a reputation for his reimaginings, which creatively engage with music of the past, and is currently studying for a doctorate in opera-ballet composition as the Senior Music Scholar at St Catherine’s College, Oxford.

Leo’s music has been described by The Times as “imaginative and beautifully shaped”, and has received performances by ensembles including the English Chamber Orchestra, London Sinfonietta, Rambert Dance Company and Opera North.

Leo began his conducting career at the Royal Opera House as a Cover Conductor for The Royal Ballet. Described by James Murphy, CEO of the Royal Philharmonic Society as “one of the great young British conductors to watch,” Leo has worked as a guest conductor with the BBC Concert Orchestra, English National Opera, Birmingham Contemporary Music Ensemble, the National Theatre, Ensemble 212 (USA), AUT (Denmark), and other ensembles.

​When he was 19, Leo founded an orchestra which has now grown to become Constella Music. He has brought together internationally renowned artists in numerous critically acclaimed performances across the UK. Last year, Leo began his training as a presenter on the BBC Open Music Programme with Katie Derham as his mentor. He made his debut at the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall with the BBC Concert Orchestra, for a BBC Proms performance broadcast live on Radio 3.

Joanna Turner – Director/Librettist

Joanna is Artistic Director of Baseless Fabric. She is an opera director and theatre maker with a particular passion for re-imagining classics, working in non-traditional theatre spaces and reaching new diverse audiences. Experienced working on big stages as well as in site-specific, immersive and promenade environments, Joanna places clear detailed storytelling and a focus on the relationships between characters at the heart of her work.

Recent credits include: Cosi Fan Tutte (Royal Danish Opera – Revival Director), Carmen (Arcola Theatre & Street Opera, 4 Stars Evening Standard), Die Fledermaus (Arcola Theatre & Street Opera – 4 Stars The Guardian & The Stage), Cosi Fan Tutte (Street Opera – OffWestEnd Award Finalist for Best Opera Production).

As a librettist Joanna has adapted and re-written new contemporary English librettos of The Elixir of Love, Carmen, Die Fledermaus and Cosi Fan Tutte for re-imagined productions aimed at reaching new diverse audiences performed promenade in public spaces.

Associate/Revival Director credits include work at Vlaamse Opera Belgium, New York City Opera and Opera North and as Assistant Director at Opera North, Welsh National Opera, Scottish Opera, Toronto Luminato Festival, Shakespeare’s Globe and Young Vic. Directors assisted include Katie Mitchell, Tim Albery and Daniel Kramer. Joanna also worked as a script reader for Liverpool Everyman and Manchester Royal Exchange including for the Bruntwood Prize, and as a youth theatre leader at the Orange Tree Theatre and Hackney Music Development Trust.

Marina Hadjilouca – Designer

Marina Hadjilouca is an award winning Performance Designer and an Academic currently based at Rose Bruford College. As a practitioner, Marina creates Scenographic Interventions in contested public spaces and designs sets and costumes for theatrical performances and the opera. She has collaborated with major theatre organisations in the UK, Cyprus and Greece, including Arcola’s Grimeborn Festival, the National Theatre of Cyprus, and the International Festival of Ancient Greek Drama.