{"id":336332,"date":"2025-08-11T18:00:13","date_gmt":"2025-08-11T18:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/336332\/"},"modified":"2025-08-11T18:00:13","modified_gmt":"2025-08-11T18:00:13","slug":"lheure-espagnole-the-nen-north-edinburgh-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/336332\/","title":{"rendered":"L\u2019heure espagnole \u2013 The NEN \u2013 North Edinburgh News"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

On 4 September,\u00a0Scottish Opera\u2019s 2025\/26 Season opens at Lammermuir Festival in East Lothian with a performance of two caustic comedies of infidelity: Maurice Ravel\u2019s\u00a0L\u2019heure espagnole\u00a0(marking 150 years since the composer\u2019s birth)\u00a0and William Walton\u2019s\u00a0The Bear.<\/strong><\/p>\n

This irresistible evening of musical mischief\u00a0takes place at St Mary\u2019s Parish Church in Haddington and is conducted by French opera expert\u00a0Alexandra Cravero <\/strong>(Th\u00e9r\u00e8se\u00a02022.)\u00a0Jacopo Spirei<\/strong>, who worked extensively with renowned opera director Sir Graham Vick, directs\u00a0this new concert staging, reimagining these operas as\u00a0short, comic television episodes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Designs are by\u00a0the award-winning\u00a0Kenneth MacLeod<\/strong>, who is also working with the Company this Season on\u00a0Opera Highlights.<\/p>\n

This concert continues Scottish Opera\u2019s long-running partnership with Lammermuir Festival and demonstrates its commitment to exploring and championing lesser-known pieces by great composers.<\/p>\n

There are further opportunities to see Ravel\u2019s and Walton\u2019s mini masterpieces at Theatre\u00a0Royal Glasgow in October\u00a0and Festival Theatre Edinburghin November.<\/p>\n

These performances,\u00a0supported byThe Scottish Opera Endowment Trust<\/strong>,\u00a0feature\u00a0former Emerging and Associate Artist and Education Artist-in-Residence\u00a0Lea Shaw<\/strong>;\u00a0Chloe Harris<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Edward Jowle<\/strong>, returning as 2025\/26 Emerging Artists;\u00a0Company favourite\u00a0Jamie MacDougall<\/strong>; and 2025\/26 Emerging Artists\u00a0Daniel Barrett<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Luvo Maranti<\/strong>. They are accompanied by\u00a0The Orchestra of Scottish Opera<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Ravel\u2019s Spanish-influenced\u00a0L\u2019heure espagnole\u00a0sees a turn from melodramatic to farcical. A clockmaker\u2019s serially unfaithful wife must come up with increasingly creative ways to hide her lovers over 21 fast-paced scenes.<\/p>\n

The Bear,\u00a0a witty one-act opera by English composer William Walton based on a Chekhov play, finds a widow confronting her late husband\u2019s legacy \u2014 and serial adultery \u2014 when a creditor comes knocking.<\/p>\n

While the two composers\u2019 sound worlds are unique, they both examine the workings of imperfect human hearts with wry empathy.<\/p>\n

Jacopo Spirei<\/strong>\u00a0said: \u2018I wanted to explore how two women, one trapped in time, the other in mourning, fight to reclaim control of their own narratives.\u00a0L\u2019heure espagnole\u00a0and\u00a0The Bear\u00a0may be comedies, but beneath the farce lies a sharp, emotional truth about independence, desire, and transformation.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2018By reframing\u00a0L\u2019heure espagnole\u00a0and\u00a0The Bear\u00a0as if they were episodes in your Netflix queue, we hold up a screen to modern life, where emotions are edited, stories are bingeable, and even grief gets a promo. But what happens when women stop playing the roles they\u2019ve been given?\u2019<\/p>\n

Alexandra Cravero\u00a0said: \u2018L\u2019heure espagnole\u00a0and\u00a0The Bear\u00a0are both about women in love and highlight the differences between Ravel\u2019s\u00a0French style and the British style of Walton. <\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe French style invites us to savour the sensuality of orchestral colour, enhanced with a touch of Spanish elegance. In contrast, the British style surprises with its rhythmic intensity. Though composed 60 years apart, these two works humorously explore the complexities of love, across centuries and civilisations.\u2019<\/p>\n

James Waters<\/strong>, co-director of Lammermuir Festival said: \u2018Over the last 8 years, our partnership with\u00a0Scottish Opera has brought festival goers a fantastic variety of works and is always a much talked about highlight of the festival.<\/strong> <\/p>\n

\u201cThis year, as the centrepiece of our tribute to Ravel in his 150th anniversary year, Scottish Opera\u2019s concert staging of his one-act opera\u00a0L\u2019heure espagnole\u00a0is certain to be a huge hit.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn addition, this double bill promises more with Walton\u2019s one-act chamber opera,\u00a0The Bear. It\u2019s a great programme, a night of operatic comedy and ravishing music and we look forward to being entertained and wowed once again.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the Glasgow and Edinburgh performances of the double bill, tickets start from just \u00a323, and with 50% of seats on sale priced under \u00a340, Scottish Opera ensures world-class opera remains accessible to everyone across Scotland. <\/strong><\/p>\n

In addition,\u00a315 are tickets available for under-26s and students at every performance. Over 800 free tickets have been provided to schools since 2022, often introducing pupils to live opera for the first time, and over 1,600 free tickets have been distributed to New Scots communities across the Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness and Edinburgh. Free tickets are also available for schools, colleges, and community groups, with travel subsidies where needed.<\/p>\n

In December, Scottish Opera\u2019s Opera is Concert series continues at Usher Hall Edinburgh with\u00a0Tchaikovsky\u2019s\u00a0Heroines & Heroes.\u00a0This features\u00a0selections from\u00a0Eugene Onegin, Iolanta, and\u00a0The Maid of Orleans\u00a0conducted by\u00a0Scottish Opera Music Director\u00a0Stuart Stratford<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

With a cast including\u00a0Lauren Fagan<\/strong>\u00a0(Ainadamar\u00a02022),\u00a0Josef Jeongmeen Ahn<\/strong>\u00a0(Don Pasquale\u00a02024), and\u00a0Natalia Kutateladze<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Robert Lewis<\/strong>\u00a0in their Company debuts,\u00a0this concert features extended excerpts from three of the iconic Russian composer\u2019s best works,\u00a0which all centre complex and richly drawn women.<\/p>\n

Eugene Onegin\u00a0is a\u00a0deeply moving tale of unrequited love and high society life;\u00a0The Maid of Orleans\u00a0is a romantic retelling of the story of Joan of Arc; and\u00a0Iolanta,\u00a0the last opera Tchaikovsky composed, is a dreamlike fairy tale of a blind princess discovering the world outside her isolated garden home.\u00a0Allowing audiences to discover his music\u00a0\u2014<\/strong>\u00a0which blended French and German influences with Russian traditions\u00a0\u2014<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0beyond\u00a0The Nutcracker, this is the perfect winter night out.<\/p>\n

L\u2019heure espagnole\u00a0&\u00a0The Bear\u00a0and\u00a0Tchaikovsky\u2019s Heroines & Heroes\u00a0are supported by\u00a0The Scottish Opera Endowment Trust<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Friends of Scottish Opera<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Tickets for\u00a0L\u2019heure espagnole\u00a0&\u00a0The Bear, and\u00a0Tchaikovsky\u2019s Heroines & Heroes\u00a0are available from\u00a0www.scottishopera.org.uk<\/a><\/p>\n

Double bill creative team<\/p>\n

Conductor\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Alexandra Cravero<\/strong><\/p>\n

Concert Staging\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jacopo Spirei<\/strong><\/p>\n

Designer\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Kenneth MacLeod<\/strong><\/p>\n

Lighting Designer\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Andrew Burnside<\/strong><\/p>\n

Cast of\u00a0L\u2019heure espagnole<\/p>\n

Concepci\u00f3n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Lea Shaw
<\/strong>Torquemada\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Jamie MacDougall
<\/strong>Ramiro\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Daniel Barrett*
<\/strong>Don I\u00f1igo Gomez\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Edward Jowle*
<\/strong>Gonzalve\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Luvo Maranti*<\/strong><\/p>\n

Cast of\u00a0The Bear<\/p>\n

Yelena Ivanovna Popova\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Chloe Harris*<\/strong><\/p>\n

Grigory Stepanovich Smirnov\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Daniel Barrett<\/strong>*<\/strong><\/p>\n

Luka\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Edward Jowle*<\/strong><\/p>\n

*Scottish Opera Emerging Artist 2025\/26<\/p>\n

Performance Diary<\/p>\n

Lammermuir Festival\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

St Mary\u2019s Church, Haddington<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

4 September 7.30pm\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Theatre Royal Glasgow\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

18 & 22 October 7.15pm\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Festival Theatre Edinburgh\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

15 November 7.15pm\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Pre-show talks\u00a0\u00a0\u2013 22 October & 15 November\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Audio description \/ Touch Tours\u00a0\u00a0\u2013 22 October & 15 November\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"On 4 September,\u00a0Scottish Opera\u2019s 2025\/26 Season opens at Lammermuir Festival in East Lothian with a performance of two…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":323012,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8816],"tags":[748,1102,4884,712,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-336332","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-edinburgh","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-edinburgh","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-scotland","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115011441473777081","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336332","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=336332"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336332\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/323012"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=336332"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=336332"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=336332"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}