Open-air opera evening to end with firework spectacle

The annual open-air evening concert on Saturday July 30 will feature a host of well-known pieces from films and television advertisements, opera excerpts, songs from the musicals and classic hits from the 50s, 60s and 70s.

Performing alongside Aled Jones will be opera soloists Orla Boylan, Heather Shipp, Gwyn Hughes Jones and David Kempster.

The Leeds Festival Chorus will be accompanied by the orchestra of Opera North.

The opera excerpts will come from Verdi’s La Traviata and Puccini’s Madame Butterfly. The classics will be represented by pieces by Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev, Handel and Glinka.

More modern pieces from musicals include Somewhere from Leonard Bernstein’s classic West Side Story, I Could Have Danced All Night from My Fair Lady by Lerner and Loewe and Losing My Mind from Follies by Stephen Sondheim.

The dramatic O Fortuna from Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, which any fans of ITV talent show The X Factor will instantly recognise, will be included too.

The Yorkshire Post is a media partner for the event, which will end with a spectacular fireworks finale and performance of Nessun Dorma – from the final act of Puccini’s opera Turandot – by tenor Gwyn Hughes Jones.

Councillor Adam Ogilvie, Leeds City Council’s member for leisure said: “The programme for this year’s Opera in the Park is packed with classic songs and popular and well-known pieces of music so there really will be something for everyone to enjoy.

“From the most ardent classical music fan to anyone who watches The X Factor, there will be a host of songs and pieces of music you will recognise. It promises to be a really entertaining event.”

In the face of huge financial cuts, the council has been forced to charge for entry this year – with general admission costing £12 per person.

The council expects a capacity crowd of about 50,000 to attend this year’s event.

Tickets can be booked online at www.leeds.gov.uk/opera or by visiting or telephoning the Leeds Visitor Centre at Leeds railway station or from the box office at The Carriageworks off Millennium Square on 0113 224 3801.