University College Opera

TheBloomsbury Theatre, University College Opera's main performance venue
Abbreviation	UCOpera
Formation	1951; 74 years ago (1951)
Type	Studentopera company
Location	London, United Kingdom
Parent organization	Students' Union UCL
Affiliations	UCL Symphony Orchestra UCL Symphony Chorus
Website	ucopera.co.uk

University College Opera, or UCOpera, is the student opera company ofUniversity College London. The operas are staged by professional singers, directors and designers, with the orchestra,chorus and some singers drawn from the student body.^[1] Founded in 1951, UCOpera is renowned for its productions of under-performed operas, which include the stagings of 3 world premières and 23 British premières to date. On 10 March 2008, UCOpera staged the UK première ofÉdouard Lalo'sFiesque, at theBloomsbury Theatre.^[2] 2009 saw another British première,Ernest Bloch'sMacbeth.^[3] UCOpera extended its list of British premières by stagingGounod'sPolyeucte atTheatre Royal Stratford East in 2018,^[4]Smetana's Czech national operaLibuše in 2019,^[5] andRobert Ward'sThe Crucible in 2024. In 2025, UCOpera held the European première ofGregory Spears'Fellow Travelers.

The brainchild of the conductor Anthony Addison, (UCL's then Director of Music), University College Opera gave its first performance in 1951 with an all-student production ofPurcell'sDido and Aeneas, followed byMozart'sBastien und Bastienne. Even in its earliest years, the company's annual repertoire concentrated on rarely performed operas including:Nicolai'sThe Merry Wives of Windsor (1952),Bizet'sDon Procopio (1955) andLortzing'sDer Wildschütz (1958). In 1961, the company staged its first UK première,Moniuszko'sHalka.

During its first 17 years, UCOpera's performances took place in the old gymnasium at University College. With the opening of the college'sBloomsbury Theatre in 1968, the company finally acquired a suitable venue for its productions. Under the directorship of George Badacsonyi who served from 1963 to 1976, UCOpera increasingly employed professional opera singers (often in the early stages of their careers) to sing the solo roles, with students making up the chorus and orchestra. Amongst the professional singers who have appeared with the company areFelicity Lott (who is now the patron of Friends of UCOpera),Robert Lloyd,Jonathan Summers andJulian Gavin. The company's productions also became more ambitious with a series of UK and world premières including:Wagner'sDas Liebesverbot (1965);Haydn'sDie Feuersbrunst (1966);Erkel'sBánk bán (1968); andVerdi'sAlzira (1970).

A highlight for the company under the directorship of David Drummond (who served from 1992 to 2001) was UCOpera's world première staging ofCésar Franck'sHulda in its complete form. The 1994 production used a score which Drummond restored from the composer's original manuscript.^[6] Drummond's last performance as the company's Director coincided with its 50th anniversary, the 2001 UK première ofAulis Sallinen'sKullervo.^[7]

Under the directorship of Charles Peebles, UCOpera has produced British premières ofHahn'sCiboulette,Dvořák'sVanda,Lalo'sFiesque,Gounod'sPolyeucte andSmetana'sLibuše. In 2012 UCOpera produced the first staging ofRameau'sAcante et Céphise since the 18th century. After staging at least one opera a year for 69 years, the continuity was broken in 2020, as the production ofHaydn'sL'anima del filosofo was cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.^[8]

Since 2022, UCOpera has been under the baton of Matt Scott Rogers.^[9] The first UCOpera production under Rogers wasCarlisle Floyd'sSusannah (2023).^[10] This was followed in 2024 by the company's UK première ofRobert Ward'sThe Crucible, adapted from the celebratedArthur Millerplay.^[11] In 2025, UCOpera staged the European première ofGregory Spears'Fellow Travelers, based on the 2007 novel of the same name byThomas Mallon, with Eleanor Strutt returning to direct.^[12]

(* denotes British premières)

(*** denotes European premières)

(* denotes British premières)

(** denotes world premières)

Notes

Sources

• Christiansen, Rupert,"South Seas romp for desert island Dick"^{[dead link]} (review of Offenbach'sWhittington),The Daily Telegraph, 26 March 2005. Retrieved 8 March 2008.
• Elleson, Ruth,"Bloch'sMacbeth" (review),Opera Today, 30 March 2009.
• Hall, George"Fiesque" (review),The Guardian, 12 March 2008. Retrieved 13 March 2008.
• Kimberley, Nick,"Epic on a human scale"^{[dead link]} (review of Sallinen'sKullervo),The Independent, 29 March 2001. Retrieved 8 March 2008.
• Maycock, Robert,"Out of the top drawer" (review of Franck'sHulda),The Independent, 24 March 1994
• Maycock, Robert,"Classical Music",The Independent, 24 March 1995
• University College Opera,Company history (official website)

• University College Opera official website
• The Bloomsbury Theatre, the main venue for UCOpera performances
• UCOpera Photo Gallery

• Opera companies in London
• Clubs and societies of University College London
• University musical groups in the United Kingdom
• Performing groups established in 1951
• 1951 establishments in England

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