Britain's What's On Event Guide
Le Carnaval de Venise
Announcing our 2025 summer festival show: Le Carnaval de Venise (1699), a circus-opera with music by André Campra
Saturday 30 & Sunday 31 August
Saturday 6 & Sunday 7 September
3pm ’til late at The Vache, HP8 4SD
To celebrate our fifth anniversary, we’re colliding Baroque opera with the electrifying world of the circus – think aerial artists and acrobats! Campra’s dramatic music is a feast of styles and forms; folk dances featuring toe-tapping percussion riffs contrast with lyrical arias and joyful chorus numbers, with lyrics in both French and Italian (oh, and some of our English, too).
Act I opens with a stage manager nagging their colleagues for being so behind with setting up. The Goddess Minerva arrives; shocked at the state of preparations, she calls upon the Gods of Music, Dance, Painting and Architecture to help create something spectacular. Later we meet two pairs of lovers at comedic cross purposes. The plot culminates with a ‘play within a play’ to celebrate the Venice Carnival. When this production of the Orpheus myth is finally mounted, it proves the perfect opportunity for one of the couples to elope, happy at last.
Starring mezzo-soprano Katie Bray and soprano Julieth Lozano and lead by director James Hurley and associate director Rebecca Solomon (circus, movement), we promise you an in-the-round show that is fast-paced, dramatic and just a little bit participatory… The spectacle will unfold under an atmospheric circus tent in the grounds of The Vache (or Venice 2.0).
Saturday 30 & Sunday 31 August
Saturday 6 & Sunday 7 September
3pm ’til late at The Vache, HP8 4SD
To celebrate our fifth anniversary, we’re colliding Baroque opera with the electrifying world of the circus – think aerial artists and acrobats! Campra’s dramatic music is a feast of styles and forms; folk dances featuring toe-tapping percussion riffs contrast with lyrical arias and joyful chorus numbers, with lyrics in both French and Italian (oh, and some of our English, too).
Act I opens with a stage manager nagging their colleagues for being so behind with setting up. The Goddess Minerva arrives; shocked at the state of preparations, she calls upon the Gods of Music, Dance, Painting and Architecture to help create something spectacular. Later we meet two pairs of lovers at comedic cross purposes. The plot culminates with a ‘play within a play’ to celebrate the Venice Carnival. When this production of the Orpheus myth is finally mounted, it proves the perfect opportunity for one of the couples to elope, happy at last.
Starring mezzo-soprano Katie Bray and soprano Julieth Lozano and lead by director James Hurley and associate director Rebecca Solomon (circus, movement), we promise you an in-the-round show that is fast-paced, dramatic and just a little bit participatory… The spectacle will unfold under an atmospheric circus tent in the grounds of The Vache (or Venice 2.0).
Sat 30 Aug, Sun 31 Aug, Sat 6 Sep, Sun 7 Sep
The Vache
Chalfont St. Giles
Buckinghamshire HP8 4SD
Saturday 30 & Sunday 31 AugustSaturday 6 & Sunday 7 September
3pm ’til late at The Vache, HP8 4SD
£15 - £90
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