A Brief History...
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In 1992, a handful of dedicated people with a passion for Opera worked together to present an Opera Gala Event ‘par excellence’ in the exotically beautiful & remote North-West town of Broome in Western Australia. 1993 saw Michele Nott’s dream come to fruition with Opera being presented for the very first time above the 26th Parallel in Western Australia. The event, starring Mary-Attracta Connolly (Soprano) & Fergus Anderson (Baritone), was to be the first of many successes.
Since its inception many stars of national & international Opera have performed at OPERA UNDER THE STARS® including Aivale Cole, Joshua Bloom, Phoebe Briggs, Janice Chapman, James Clayton, Ding Yi, Aldo Di Toro, Rachelle Durkin, Shannon Foley, Antoinette Halloran, Roxane Hislop, Kate Johnson, Leanne Kenneally, Simon Kenway, Michael Lewis, Judit Lorincz, Emma Matthews, Kathryn McCusker, David McSkimming, Andrew Schroeder, Dimity Shepherd, Tiffany Speight, Stuart Skelton, Katherine Tier, Katja Webb, Angus Wood, John Bolton Wood & David Wickham. Local Broome musicians including Guy Ghouse, Mick Manolis and Steve Pigram have also featured on the OPERA UNDER THE STARS® stage.
Renowned for its star performers, sublime venue and spine-tingling pleasure value this unique must experience event is now celebrated as the highlight of the Kimberley Cultural Events Calendar.
Audiences over the years have enjoyed music programmes that have included an eclectic mix of some of Opera’s most loved favourites, as well as other less performed gems which have provided heady delights for opera lovers and opera novices alike.
Highlights include the Special Guest performance by Janice Chapman in 1994; performances of local songs by Broome artists Steve Pigram and Mick Manolis with baritone Fergus Anderson in 1995; excerpts from Carmen in 1996 with Jolanta Nagajek , Mary-Attracta Connolly (Soprano & Director of OPERA UNDER THE STARS®), Yu Jixing & Kerry Henderson; Highlights from La Bohème in 1998 featuring Kathryn McCusker & Adrian McEniery; The Three Chinese Tenors in 1999 with Special Guest Artist, Mary-Attracta Connolly; the Australian debut of American baritone Andrew Schroeder with Tiffany Speight & Daniella Erhlich in 2000; the exuberant performances of Natalie Jones, Lisa Russell and Dimity Shepherd with Simon Kenway in 2001; the terrific 2003 trio of Kirsti Harms, Ding Yi & Joshua Bloom together with Phoebe Briggs; the sublime quartet of Leanne Kenneally, Catherine Carby, Angus Wood & Shannon Foley with Stephen Mould in 2004; the highly entertaining ensemble of Rachelle Durkin, Mary-Attracta Connolly, Dimity Shepherd, Aldo Di Toro and Tommaso Pollio in 2005 and, in 2006, the outstanding performances of Emma Matthews, Roxane Hislop, Aldo Di Toro, John Bolton Wood and Phoebe Briggs.
In 2002 OPERA UNDER THE STARS® celebrated its 10th Anniversary with a spectacular Gala Performance starring Jennifer Barnes, Jacqueline Moran (Dark), Stuart Skelton, Douglas McNicol and Francis Greep, together with Special Guest Artists Janice Chapman and Mary-Attracta Connolly. A scintillating programme of music featuring highlights from Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, with a plot change to incorporate Broome’s Japanese heritage, ensured sheer, magical delight and a celebration to relish & remember.
OPERA UNDER THE STARS® was presented at the Mangrove Resort Hotel from 1993 - 2006.
In 2007 OPERA UNDER THE STARS® entered an exciting new epoch with its inaugural presentation at the stunning Cable Beach Amphitheatre, situated adjacent to the sparkling waters of Broome’s picturesque Cable Beach. Famous for its fiery sunsets, the Cable Beach skyline provided a breath-taking backdrop to OPERA UNDER THE STARS® 2007. The proximity to Cable Beach also added a special ‘saltwater’ sense of place to the 15th Annual Award Winning OPERA UNDER THE STARS® Gala. Audience members from around Australia revelled in a thrilling night of Opera entertainment performed with wondrous panache by Sarah Crane, Louise Callinan, James Egglestone, Shaun Brown and David McSkimming.
In 2008 OPERA UNDER THE STARS® made a spectacular return to the Cable Beach Amphitheatre with its presentation of a fireworks night of entertainment featuring international artists Aivale Cole, Judit Lorincz, Bradley Daley, Douglas McNicol and Francis Greep. Subsequently, in 2009, OPERA UNDER THE STARS® was thrilled to present the Broome debut of acclaimed Australian baritone, Michael Lewis, together with Aivale Cole, Katja Webb, Katherine Tier and David Wickham in a breathtaking programme of music that especially featured music by the great Italian master, Verdi. And, in 2010, OPERA UNDER THE STARS® featured the exquisite Antoinette Halloran, Aldo Di Toro, Stuart Skelton, James Clayton and Kate Johnson who enthralled all present with a night of immense pleasure and entertainment that had the audience enraptured and on their feet with cries of “Encore! Encore!”.
With the goal of enhancing its already strong community focus, in 2004 OPERA UNDER THE STARS® initiated the annual ‘Oper-Arte’ Art Exhibition and Auction ~ the Art Exhibition with a difference that makes a difference ~ that sees the total proceeds of the ‘Oper-Arte’ Auction used each year to provide increased access to musical instruments / materials for the children of Broome and the West Kimberley via donations to the 6 schools of Broome, the 3 schools of the Dampier Peninsula and La Grange Remote Community School at Bidydanga.
The Seventh ‘Oper-Arte’ Art Exhibition & Auction in 2010 featured a compelling exhibition of new works by Judy Prosser and was Officially Opened on Thursday 28th August at the Broome Convention Centre Chinatown. The ‘Oper-Arte’ 2010 Auction was a nail biting affair and an all time record was reached with Judy Prosser’s painting Dancer with Brolgas attaining a fantastic final bid of $8,000 from Kerry Stokes AC. Then, unexpectedly, the painting was donated by Kerry Stokes to Broome’s Kyle Andrews Foundation and re-sold to the second highest bidder, Gaye Wotherspoon, thus earning $7,500 for the Kyle Andrews Foundation and effectively ensuring that ‘Oper-Arte’ made double the difference in 2010!
Since the inception of the ‘Oper-Arte’ Art Exhibition & Auction musical instruments / materials donated to the schools have totalled over $47,000.00 in value. ‘Oper-Arte’ is unique in that it is an art exhibition that not only provides a special opportunity for the intermingling of the worlds of Opera and Visual Art but, it is also making a singular difference in nurturing the musical talents of the children of the West Kimberley, the musicians of the future.
Since its beginnings OPERA UNDER THE STARS® has enjoyed a strong connection with the wonderful music of Broome and especially the music of Broome composer Jimmy Chi of Bran Nue Dae and Corrugation Road fame. The much loved song Child of Glory, from the hit musical Bran Nue Dae, has been performed at every OPERA UNDER THE STARS® since 1993 and has been adopted and performed with zeal as the OPERA UNDER THE STARS® theme song in tribute to the song’s composer, Jimmy Chi.
OPERA UNDER THE STARS® has been endorsed as an Event of Excellence by Tourism Council Australia via the Western Australian Tourism Awards having been announced as the 1999 Winner and 2000 Finalist in the Significant Regional Festivals & Special Events category, as well as being a 1999 Finalist in the Australian Tourism Awards.
OPERA UNDER THE STARS® has always had a special ’personal’ charm and the spirit of the event is contributed to immeasurably by friends and family, both local and those who travel from all parts of Australia, who add their energetic enthusiasm and support to the event on an annual basis.
One of the most important aims of OPERA UNDER THE STARS® is to present an event that is accessible to everyone. This most important of aims could not have been successfully achieved without the invaluable support of committed Sponsors whose assistance is essential to the presentation of OPERA UNDER THE STARS® on an annual basis. We would therefore like to acknowledge our 2011 Sponsors:
Premier Sponsor - West Kimberley Fuels
Principal Sponsor - Broome International Airport Group
Major Sponsors - Qantas, Cable Beach Club Resort & Spa, Horizon Power and Galwey.
OPERA UNDER THE STARS®:
Director: Mary-Attracta Connolly
Technical Director: Michael G. Connolly
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