NBR New Zealand Opera Re-Stages Daniel Slater's THE BARTERED BRIDE Tonight, Oct 13

The NBR New Zealand Opera's restaging of Daniel Slater's ground-breaking Opera North production of Smetana's The Bartered Bride, opening in Wellington tonight, 13 October, dispenses with the folkloric clichés normally associated with this opera in favour of an updated setting in the Czechoslovakia of 1972, four years after the Prague Spring.

General Director of The NBR New Zealand Opera, Aidan Lang states, "This is a fast-moving and very theatrical production, with an effervescence to it. There's a definite Eastern European feel, but Daniel Slater's direction brilliantly captures the warmth and humour of the story while still allowing the audience to sense the underbelly of it."

"Designer Robert Innes Hopkins' delightfully bad '70s hair and clothes further add to the opera's comic charms," he adds. "And the music is dazzling, and gorgeously lyrical. It's also technically challenging, so we've cast some leading singers in order to meet those demands."

In a Czech village, Marenka (NZ soprano Anna Leese) is distraught because she is being forced to marry Vašek (NZ tenor Andrew Glover), a stuttering rich boy, instead of her heart's desire, the mysterious Jenik (English tenor Peter Wedd). The marriage broker, Kecal (NZ bass Conal Coad) is determined to get his cut and tries to scare off Jenik, and Ma?enka uses her feminine wiles to confuse poor Vašek. Can this love triangle successfully turn back into the conventional shape?

In other principal roles, Australian Taryn Fiebig (soprano) sings Esmeralda, the star of the circus, and John Antoniou (Australian baritone) joins New Zealanders Patricia Wright (soprano), Richard Green (bass) and Helen Medlyn (mezzo soprano) to sing Krušina, Ludmila, Micha and Hata, respectively.

Returning following critical acclaim as conductor of 2011's Cav & Pag is Oliver von Dohnányi, Director of the State Opera of Prague and the original conductor of this production when it was performed in the UK.

The Bartered Bride is accompanied by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra and the Vector Wellington Orchestra, with the Chapman Tripp Opera Chorus. It is sung in English.

THE BARTERED BRIDE SCHEDULE

Wellington – St James Theatre

Sat 13 Oct (7.30pm), Tue 16 Oct (6pm), Thu 18 Oct (7.30pm), Sat 20 Oct (7.30pm)

Single Tickets: $49.50 to $189.50. Concessions available for benefactors, senior citizens, students and group bookings. Service fees apply. Bookings: NZ Opera Box Office, Tel (09) 379 4068 or (04) 499 8343, or:

Wellington: Ticketek, Tel 0800 TICKETEK (0800 842 538) or www.ticketek.co.nz.

For more information, visit www.nzopera.com.