Breaking: UK summer festival is off
mainGrange Park Opera has cancelled this summer.
Its founder Wasfi Kani says:
We are in touch with our opera colleagues and have decided to put the 2020 season on ice. There could be some performances but with things moving so fast, it is difficult to make a concrete plan.
We ask that our valued customers and supporters of Grange Park Opera consider donating the price of their tickets to our Operating Fund rather than requesting a credit note or refund. This will help the charity at a very challenging time.
Thank you for your support and faith in these difficult times . . . and for these indoor times, I have created Spotify playlists to broaden your non-operatic repertoire. More will be added soon.
We will be in touch as soon as possible.
Wasfi Kani
CEO & Founder
I sincerely hope that, in line with recent pronouncements from Scottish Opera and ENO, they intend to show goodwill and pay their artists.
Having your diary and earning capacity wiped completely clear by the Coronavirus will see an enormous number of freelancers at risk of losing their homes (a fate which no doubt very few of the audience at Grange Park could imagine).
indeed, they are asking patrons to donate their ticket costs. People perhaps shouldn’t do this unless they undertake to compensate the affected artists