CUOS Shorts 2025
YUSUF HAMIED THEATRE, 8pm 7th & 8th march
CUOS Shorts is a festival of new chamber opera composed and staged by current Cambridge students. The 3 operas being premiered this year are "Martyrdom of an Anabaptist" by Stefan Wilkinson-Hill, "Willow" by Phillip Matty, and "The Pied Piper" by Marcus Budack.
"Willow" is a poignant five-act chamber opera exploring love, mental illness, and grief through the intimate relationship between Oak (counter-tenor) and Willow (baritone). The work traces the emotional journey of supporting a partner through mental decline, experiencing loss, and ultimately finding acceptance, using an intimate musical approach with a small ensemble of flute, horn, viola, and cello. Inspired by texts from Virginia Woolf and Percy Bysshe Shelley, the opera employs dramatic techniques like asynchronous conversations, fragmented monologues, and a powerful use of silence to explore themes of connection, memory, and emotional endurance. The piece uniquely personifies Oak as both a character and a tree, blurring boundaries between reality and metaphor, and creates a meditative exploration of love's resilience in the face of mental health challenges.
"The Martyrdom of an Anabaptist", composed by Stefan Wilkinson-Hill, with a libretto written by Magnus Hole, is a stirring account from The Martyr's Mirror, a 17th century collection documenting the lives of murdered Anabaptists. It focuses on a Mennonite called Dirk Willems, who is imprisoned by imperial authorities near Asperen, in Holland, and who subsequently escapes. During his escape, his pursuer falls into icy waters, and seems certain to die. At this point, Willems turns back and hauls him out of the water, saving his life. Willems is then re-arrested and executed. Musically built around leitmotifs and melody, the opera is written for an ensemble of strings, piano, two clarinets, a flute, and three singers - alto, tenor, and bass.
The Pied Piper reimagined as a chilling allegory for xenophobia, following the gradual disappearance of characters from the stage. Without a named Pied Piper, the story portrays exclusion and fear as pervasive forces rather than the actions of a single antagonist. A tragedy for piano/organ and string ensemble (with a few moments of irony) and five singers (four upper voices, one lower).
"Willow" is a poignant five-act chamber opera exploring love, mental illness, and grief through the intimate relationship between Oak (counter-tenor) and Willow (baritone). The work traces the emotional journey of supporting a partner through mental decline, experiencing loss, and ultimately finding acceptance, using an intimate musical approach with a small ensemble of flute, horn, viola, and cello. Inspired by texts from Virginia Woolf and Percy Bysshe Shelley, the opera employs dramatic techniques like asynchronous conversations, fragmented monologues, and a powerful use of silence to explore themes of connection, memory, and emotional endurance. The piece uniquely personifies Oak as both a character and a tree, blurring boundaries between reality and metaphor, and creates a meditative exploration of love's resilience in the face of mental health challenges.
"The Martyrdom of an Anabaptist", composed by Stefan Wilkinson-Hill, with a libretto written by Magnus Hole, is a stirring account from The Martyr's Mirror, a 17th century collection documenting the lives of murdered Anabaptists. It focuses on a Mennonite called Dirk Willems, who is imprisoned by imperial authorities near Asperen, in Holland, and who subsequently escapes. During his escape, his pursuer falls into icy waters, and seems certain to die. At this point, Willems turns back and hauls him out of the water, saving his life. Willems is then re-arrested and executed. Musically built around leitmotifs and melody, the opera is written for an ensemble of strings, piano, two clarinets, a flute, and three singers - alto, tenor, and bass.
The Pied Piper reimagined as a chilling allegory for xenophobia, following the gradual disappearance of characters from the stage. Without a named Pied Piper, the story portrays exclusion and fear as pervasive forces rather than the actions of a single antagonist. A tragedy for piano/organ and string ensemble (with a few moments of irony) and five singers (four upper voices, one lower).
CUOS MICHAELMAS SHOW 2024: KING ARTHUR (PURCELL & DRYDEN)
20:00 31st OCTOBER, 14:00 and 20:00 2nd November, Trinity College Chapel
The magic flute: cuos mainshow 2023
On 23rd-25th February this year, Mozart's The Magic Flute had a very successful run at West Road Concert Hall.
Die fledermaus: cuos mainshow 2022On the 24th-26th February, CUOS presented its main production of the year: Johann Strauss II’s Die Fledermaus. These performances took place in the West Road Concert Hall.
Denis and Katya - michaelmas show 2021
Denis and Katya was an ambitious Michaelmas show for two singers: Hannah Dienes-Williams and Maxim Meshkvichev, and four cellists: Seth Collin, Doraly Gill, Sarah Henderson and Butterfly Patterson. The Production Team was led by Oscar Simms (Director), Jess Hoskins (Music Director) and Rosie Dunn (Assistant Music Director). The show took place in the Fitzwilliam Auditorium and received packed audiences - you can read the Varsity review below.
https://www.varsity.co.uk/theatre/22579?fs=e&s=cl Inescapably compelling and harrowing |
SEMELE: CUOS MICHAELMAS SHOW 2022
Handel’s Semele was performed from 26th-28th October in association with Downing Music Society, in their stunning Howard Theatre.
AboutCambridge University Opera Society (CUOS) are one of the largest and most prestigious student opera groups in the UK, with a busy calendar of events taking place throughout the year.
Every year CUOS stages a wide variety of operas in a number of different venues around Cambridge. It is the hard work of determined students that enable CUOS to thrive. We are proud to support these outstanding operatic endeavours and are always on the look out for future possible productions. DONATECUOS is one of the most prestigious student opera groups in the country, but we can't do what we do without your help! Click here to donate (Gift Aid recovery is available where possible).
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