Blame it on the champagne!

An evening of sparkling opera with the Cambridge Philharmonic Society

On Saturday December 6th 2008 the Philharmonic is offering one of the world’s best-loved comic operas, Die Fledermaus by Johann Strauss II, in a concert performance that will entertain, amuse and delight. Soloists Rebecca Bottone, Tinuke Olafimihan, Jeffrey Lloyd Roberts, Omar Ebrahim, and Andrew Watts will add their beautiful voices and comic timing to this tale of masked balls, prison escapades and, let’s face it, a bit too much alcohol, in an evening of sheer exuberant fun.

The plot of Strauss’ Die Fledermaus revolves around duplicity, infidelity, and an act of revenge by a character called Falke who, when dressed as a bat a year before, was let down by his companion Baron von Eisenstein. Eisenstein’s wife is visited by someone called Alfred who goes to jail instead of her husband in order to protect her. The baron, meanwhile, is flirting with his maid at a ball thinking she is someone else, and the jailer gets drunk, and...

Confused? Well yes, of course. The plot of Die Fledermaus is absurd and very silly. But the music is glorious and audiences have loved it ever since its premiere in 1874 in Vienna. It is high-spirited, ridiculous and just plain good fun.

This performance will be no exception. Conductor Tim Redmond, an opera expert, will conduct with his customary exhilarating passion, and the cast of international soloists, ably supported by the Philharmonic chorus, and backed by the Society’s impressive orchestra, will make this a pre-Christmas night to savour.

The performance starts at 7.30pm in the University Concert Hall, West Road, on Saturday December 6th. Tickets (£20; £10 for children, and students on the door) are available from the Cambridge Arts Theatre Box Office (01223 503333), online at www.cam-phil.org.uk, or at the door.

Notes for editors

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