Royal Opera House launches 'family-friendly' programme to attract new audiences

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The Royal Opera House is launching a series of “family friendly” operas in a bid to attract more diverse audiences.

The Covent Garden institution — for many years seen as an imposing citadel of high culture — currently has an average audience age of 48.

But that is set to tumble after it announced productions of Alice’s Adventures Under Ground — a 50-minute show inspired by Lewis Carroll’s stories — and The Lost Thing, based on a children’s picture book that was made into an Oscar-winning film.

It is the first season of “family friendly” commissioned by the Opera House. Covent Garden’s director of opera, Oliver Mears, said the success of earlier shows aimed at younger audiences and its recent Opera Dots workshops for toddlers proved that there was “a huge demand” for the programme.

He said: “This actually challenges so many of the preconceptions people can have about opera. If they have a good experience now, it inoculates them against prejudice that could develop later.” Mr Mears said the idea made sense for the opera house and its audiences, adding: “We have to try to appeal to a new generation or opera won’t exist any more.

“If audiences feel like they want to laugh they can laugh, if they want to make some noise they can make some noise, if they want to cry they can cry. We are in the business of direct communication.”

The Lost Thing, about a boy who finds a mysterious creature while collecting bottle-tops on an Australian beach, is being staged with the north London-based Candoco Dance Company, which has disabled and non-disabled dancers. Mr Mears said: “It is going to be a really interesting experiment and another way of not only diversifying our audience but also the performers we work with.”

The Opera House completed a multi-million-pound refurbishment programme last year. Among the improvements were a large digital screen at the entrance which broadcasts live and pre-recorded footage of performances and rehearsals, a new entrance, shop, cafe and restaurant, which are open to the public, and the remodelled Linbury Theatre.

Also announced for the new season are performances of two works by Handel — Agrippina and Susanna — and Death In Venice and The Turn Of The Screw, both by Benjamin Britten.

The Royal Ballet season, which was also announced today, includes productions of classics such as The Sleeping Beauty and Swan Lake and new works including The Dante Project, which sees choreographer Wayne McGregor team up with artist Tacita Dean to revisit the 14th century Italian poet’s classic work the Divine Comedy.

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