Read the book, seen the movies... now go to the the opera?
Today marks the opening of Wexford Festival Opera, the first time in its 59-year history that it has ever opened on a Saturday and the first time that it is hosting the European premiere of a new opera, The Golden Ticket.
The world premiere performance took place in St Louis, Missouri, earlier this year, as part of a co-production with Opera Theatre of Saint Louis and Wexford Festival Opera.
The Golden Ticket by American born composer Peter Ash is based on the book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl.
Award-winning writer and documentary maker Donald Sturrock wrote the libretto.
He has also been involved in creating a library of orchestral and operatic works for children based on Dahl's writings and his biography of Roald Dahl, Storyteller, has just been published.
Roald Dahl's widow, Felicity, has been utterly supportive of this opera and it wouldn't have happened without her.
Music fits this tale well, of course. The two film adaptations boast numbers by notable songwriters Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse in the 1971 version and Danny Elfman in the 2005 Tim Burton blockbuster. But will it work as an opera?
For composer Peter Ash it was an ideal story for an opera. He sees it as an iconic story which can take many different treatments. He also recognised typical operatic characters in the tale and composed the music for each one of them accordingly.
"The thing that really appealed to me was that the four grotesque children are really all adults, so that Charlie is the one real person in the story," he says.
"Violet is a coloratura soprano, who blows up into a blueberry and has a coloratura fit! Veruca Salt is a sassy mezzo, spoiled rich kid.
"Mike Teavee happens to be a countertenor and Augustus Gloop is the stereotypical fat tenor!"
Ash also thought that Willy Wonka himself would be a great operatic character who is both dark and light at the same time.
Ash really emphasises that there is a lot of humour in this opera, both visually and musically and hopes that Wexford audiences will "get it" in the same way St Louis audiences have done.
"In St Louis, sometimes the show just stopped because there was so much laughter" he says.
It was written for a family audience and appears to be the perfect show to introduce younger audiences to opera.
"It is a primer for young people who have never been to the opera before and I hope it shows what opera can do and my love for opera," Ash says.
Charlie will be played by the gifted boy soprano Michael Kepler Meo from Portland, Oregon.
I spoke to Michael in Wexford on his 12th birthday this week and he seems to be taking it all in his stride.
Although this will be Michael's first visit to Wexford he is no stranger to performing and has already played the role of Miles, the young boy in The Turn of the Screw for Portland Opera and Houston Grand Opera and he originated the role of Charlie in St Louis.
Michael began his career in music at the age of five with the Portland Boychoir, and wants to be an opera singer. The role of Charlie is the only role played by a child as adults are playing all of the other roles.
So does Michael mind being the only child on stage?
"No, because in opera, I have always been the only child on stage, surrounded by adults, so it feels normal" he says.
It's always hard to please everyone when programming a festival but since taking up the post as artistic director in 2005, David Agler has put his own mark on Wexford Festival Opera.
He strikes a balance between championing neglected operas and presenting exciting contemporary compositions.
This year's festival also includes a rarely performed opera; Virginia, by Saverio Mercadante and a new production of an opera previously produced at Wexford in 1984, Smetana's Hubicka (The Kiss).
The Golden Ticket sounds like the most exciting ticket to me.
The 59th Wexford Festival Opera runs from today until Saturday, October 30. Tickets can be purchased online at www.wexfordopera.com or (053) 912 2144.
Aedin Gormley is a presenter on RTÉ lyric fm
Irish Independent
