Sydney Philharmonia Choirs Presents GLORIOUS PUCCINI at Sydney Opera House Concert Hall

Sydney Philharmonia Choirs celebrates the music of Giacomo Puccini - one of the greatest opera composers of all time in an unmissable evening of entertainment, presented for one night only in the recently refurbished Sydney Opera House Concert Hall, Saturday 29 October at 8pm.

This two-hour concert, brought to life by a stellar cast of Australian singing stars together with Sydney Philharmonia's incredible 350-strong Festival Chorus, includes highlights from four of Puccini's most famous operas, alongside his rarely heard Messa di Gloria.

From Manon Lescaut to Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot, this is Puccini at his most powerful, and you can expect voices to match!

Soprano Cheryl Barker, who rose to fame in the role of Mimi in Baz Luhrman's acclaimed 1990 production of Puccini's La Bohème, shares the stage with husband, baritone Peter Coleman-Wright - the pair will perform Floria Tosca and Barone Scarpia's stirring duet from Act 2 of Tosca. Also appearing, soprano Anna-Louise Cole reprising her recent success in the title role of Opera Australia's 2022 season of Turandot, and tenor Bradley Daley singing the triumphant 'Nessun dorma' from the same opera.

Plus Sydney Philharmonia's largest choir singing great choral moments such as the 'Humming Chorus' from Madama Butterfly and the Te Deum from Tosca.

Conducted by Brett Weymark and performed by members of the Sydney Youth Orchestra, mentored on stage by professional musicians of the Sydney Philharmonia Orchestra, this will be an evening of pure entertainment resounding with drama, energy, pathos, and joy.

"Some of the best choral music around is from the operatic stage and Puccini is no exception," Brett Weymark comments. "His operas are littered with terrific chorus moments and in works like Turandot, they are in many ways the main players in the drama. It is always a revelation to hear a great operatic compositional voice with one foot in the church and one on the theatrical stage and that is exactly what you will hear in this concert."

Written when he was only 18 years old and only ever performed once in his lifetime, Puccini's Messa di Gloria is an exceptional mass for its time. Clearly influenced by his hero, Verdi, it's full of youthful vitality and colour, and overtly operatic, revealing Puccini's early genius for this artform.

This was his one and only liturgical work, written as a finale to his music studies, just before announcing his decision to turn his back on church music, and pursue a career in the theatre. Within the composition are clear musical hints of the great opera composer to come.

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