Lime Tree Theatre premieres Britten's Owen Wingrave through Irish-Parisian collective

THE LIME Tree Theatre will open the Irish premiere of Benjamin Britten’s compelling opera Owen Wingrave, delivered by Opera Collective Ireland and Académie de l’Opéra National de Paris

The show will open on September 9 at the modern Mary Immaculate College theatre, followed by performances at the Everyman Theatre in Cork and the O’Reilly Theatre in Dublin.

Performed by some of Ireland’s finest young singers, this superb piece of operatic theatre is as pertinent now as it was when first premiered 46 years ago. Founded in 2012 as Irish Youth Opera (IYO), the newly re-named Opera Collective Ireland has ushered in a new era for opera production in Ireland.

The company’s critically acclaimed stagings have showcased young Irish singers who have subsequently gone on to perform on some of the most prominent opera stages of the world including the Royal Opera Covent Garden, La Scala Milan, the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, the Maggio Musicale Florence, Opera North, Scottish Opera and the Oper Frankfurt.

OCI creates employment opportunities for indigenous artists, making a vital contribution to both their personal and professional development. To date the pioneering company has led the way with a series of innovative partnerships both at home and abroad working with, amongst others, Wexford Festival Opera, Northern Ireland Opera and the Irish Chamber Orchestra.