Opera fans soak up sun and arias

THE spectacular grounds of Johnstown Castle was the setting for the opening of the 56th Wexford opera festival last night, as men in dapper evening dress and women in fine flowing dresses soaked up the evening sunshine and music on the castle lawn.

For opera festival regulars there was a slight sense of disorientation, this year’s festival having been moved from the usual autumn billing to early summer, because of the €34 million renovations going on at the Theatre Royal in Wexford town, the usual home of the festival just nine miles away from Johnstown Castle.

The shift in season and location made for a great sense of occasion, however, with a capacity 650 audience enjoying the drama and music of Kurt Weill’s Der Silbersee (The Silver Lake), the 1933 German opera receiving its Irish premiere and providing a fitting opening to the 18 day festival.