Torbay teams up with Welsh National Opera

Torbay teams up with Welsh National Opera

The arts in Torbay have received a major boost with news that Torbay Council has formed a new partnership with Welsh National Opera.

Cllr Dave Butt, Torbay Council's Executive Lead for Culture and the Arts and Regional Board Member of Arts Council England South West, said: "This is fantastic news.

"Teaming up with such a prestigious company, so highly renowned for the quality of its performances, is a brilliant coup for Torbay.

"This three-year partnership, which has been made possible thanks to a generous £120,000 grant from the Arts Council, to whom we are extremely grateful, forms part of a bigger project and our ambition to bring the very best of all artistic art forms to the Bay and taking this work out into our local communities.

"Among the events being planned are annual concerts at Torquay's Princess Theatre, smaller concerts at the Torre Abbey Spanish Barn, workshops and master classes for local young people and musical groups co-ordinated by the Torbay Music Hub.

"We want the concerts to be accessible to all, so we will be ensuring that ticket prices are kept as low as possible."

Torbay Mayor Gordon Oliver said: "I am tremendously excited about this new partnership with Welsh National Opera, which I am sure will be welcomed by many people in Torbay.

"We are working extremely hard on promoting and developing arts and culture in Torbay, and teaming up with Welsh National Opera is a real feather in our cap.

"We believe the events being planned will help to inspire our communities and signpost talented and creative people towards a career in music and the arts."

Further information about performances and events will be publicised soon, including updates posted on the website www.creativetorbay.com

Welsh National Opera is an award-winning company based at Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff. As well as touring main scale opera throughout England and Wales it works closely with local communities with its dynamic and innovative outreach work. This three-year residency will use music and voice workshops to inspire and engage all sections of the Torbay community from 6 year-olds to pensioner groups. There will also be the opportunity to see the WNO Orchestra and Chorus perform in concert from as little as £10 a ticket.

WNO’s Chief Executive and Artistic Director, David Pountney, said: "WNO has a long association with Bristol and Plymouth where we tour regularly and we are delighted to expand our reach in the West Country. It is not easy to provide cultural stimulus to all areas of the UK, particularly in today’s London-centric climate, so we are thrilled to be able to bring high-level music making to the people of Torbay, and look forward to a fruitful and creative relationship."

Arts Council England’s Director for the South West, Phil Gibby, said: "We’re delighted to be investing in Welsh National Opera’s partnership with Torbay over the next three years. Combined with our investment in Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, this will create extra opportunities for the people of Torbay to access high quality performances in their local area