Philip Venables

A composer of ferocious dramatic instincts
— Alex Ross

Tag: Fedora Prize

  • Denis & Katya in Top 10 most performed new operas globally

    Denis & Katya in Top 10 most performed new operas globally

    Denis & Katya has been cited as in the top ten most performed contemporary operas across the world in the last seven years. The citation has come from a wide survey of performances of opera made in collaboration between Operabase and the Fedora platform.

    Denis & Katya has so far had productions in Philadelphia, Wales/London, Montpellier, Cambridge, Hannover, Amsterdam and Helsinki, with more productions on the way in Pittsburgh, Hannover (revival), Copenhagen and Vienna.

    More information about the study can be found here. Ted Huffman also ranks as in the worldwide top three stage directors making productions of new opera in the last seven years.

    Denis & Katya won the Fedora Prize in 2019.

  • Denis & Katya wins Fedora Prize for Opera

    Denis & Katya wins Fedora Prize for Opera

    Denis & Katya, my second opera, has been awarded the prestigious Fedora Generali Prize for Opera this year. The prize was awarded at the Teatro la Fenice in Venice at a special awards ceremony on 28th June. The prize is awarded to contemporary opera that is currently being developed which takes risks or break conventions somehow. The prize money of 150,000€ goes to Opera Philadelphia in support of the development costs of Denis & Katya.

    The ceremony was a grand affair, with a performance and reception afterwards. I’m very grateful to the Fedora Prize, the Jury who selected our project, and of course to Opera Philadelphia, Ted Huffman and our team who is making this project so exciting to work on. The premiere of Denis & Katya is on 18th September 2019 in Philadelphia, and will be followed by productions in the UK with Music Theatre Wales and in France with Opéra National Montpellier.

    Here is a video with David Devan, CEO of Opera Philadelphia, talking about the Fedora Generali Prize for Opera.

  • Denis & Katya announced

    Denis & Katya announced

    My new latest music theatre piece, Denis & Katya, has been announced for its premiere production with the lead commissioner Opera Philadelphia.  The work has been conceived and written with my long-time collaborator, Ted Huffman.  It is pseudo-documentary music theatre, taking a true story about two Russian teenagers who died in November 2016 after a stand-off with armed police.  It looks at the way the internet played a role in their death, and more generally, about how we interact with each other and show empathy in the internet age.  We hope that the form of the piece is particularly exciting in the way that it tells the story.

    Denis & Katya will also your the UK in February/March 2020 with Music Theatre Wales, including the London performances at the Southbank Centre, and the piece will make its french premiere in Montpellier. Music Theatre Wales and Montpellier Opera are both co-commissioners with Opera Philadelphia.   More information about the piece and ticket booking is here, and the London performances are available to book here.

    Denis & Katya has also been shortlisted for the prestigious Fedora Prize.  The prize-giving ceremony is on June 28th in Venice.