Opera in the Square

What is opera to you? The rush of adrenalin as a soprano or tenor’s voice soars, the hum of the chorus, the larger-than-life costumes and scenery, the moving stories, or just the whole sense of occasion?

Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour is all this, and more, so come down to the water’s edge and let the story begin.

We’re in Japan. A young American acquires a bride to keep him company during his stay. It’s clearly a financial transaction rather than a love match but on their wedding night the stars come out, their eyes meet and magic happens.

We dare you to hear Cio-Cio-San and Pinkerton’s exquisite love duet and remain unmoved, especially when it takes place against the backdrop of the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge. The stars will be there, for real. Magic too?

In Aida, Verdi masterfully puts the intimate affairs of the heart against the grandeur of the universe: where kingdoms rise and fall and the sands of time grind onwards.

What grander setting could there be for such an opera than Sydney Harbour itself: awash with the light of the city and the Sydney Opera House silhouetted against the setting sun?

Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour has become a huge part of the cultural landscape, combining all of the things Sydney does best: world-class opera, fine dining, sunsets and spectacle on the harbour’s edge.

It’s a monumental undertaking, with a team of more than 700 people involved in the project before a single note is heard over the harbour.

Aida is the biggest opera we’ve ever performed on the opera stage. But amid all of the spectacle, the famous ‘Triumphal March’, battle scenes and ancient temples, there’s an emotional heart.

Long after the fireworks have faded from the sky and Amneris sings her quiet, concluding prayer, you’ll see the true mastery of this opera: it is at once an historic epic and an utterly relatable human tragedy (read the story).

When the heroic top notes of ‘Nessun dorma’ ring out, your soul stirs. It’s impossible to resist — the climax of an exotic adventure, captured perfectly in music.

In 2016, Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour presents Turandot: a story of a death-marked love told with salt in the air, light on the sails and the city skyline reflected in your glass. It’s the best of Sydney in a single evening: singing, sunsets and sparkling wine, in perfect harmony. Join us at the water’s edge in a pop-up opera house with purpose-built bars, restaurants and a grandstand under the stars.

Chinese director Chen Shi-Zheng’s take on this Chinese fable will be one for the history books.

As a child of the Cultural Revolution, Chen Shi-Zheng grew up in a China where cruelty and beauty coexisted. Taken in by a Chinese opera troupe, he grew up surrounded by music, but witnessed great suffering. It’s a duality he finds utterly compelling, and a juxtaposition that ties in perfectly with the ice-hearted, impossibly beautiful princess at the heart of Puccini’s Turandot.

As a director, his work forms a bridge between Chinese and Western artistic approaches, drawing on the Hollywood film tradition, theatrical acrobatics and traditional Chinese opera to create works that thrill visually and cut to the heart.

Carmen stamps her feet, tosses back her hair and draws you into her world. Men fall instantly under her spell, and once you’ve heard her sultry Habanera, you’ll fall for opera’s favourite femme fatale, too.

Take a harbourside setting with an unrivalled view of the famous Sydney skyline. Build a pop-up opera house, complete with bars, restaurants and tiered seating. Add a monumental set, colourful, eye-catching costumes, spectacular dance and an explosion of fireworks, and you’ve got a night like no other.

This is Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour: the cultural event of the year. At sunset, gather with friends over a glass of something sparkling and a sumptuous Spanish meal before settling back to enjoy our vivacious, vivid production of Bizet’s Carmen as dusk settles over the harbour.

Powerful voices sing those famous Spanish tunes, filling the night air with Spanish rhythms and fiery passion. Soldiers patrol, factory girls seduce shamelessly, glittering bullfighters parade and dancers pirouette their way across the stage as the captivating Carmen walks fearlessly towards a fate written in the cards.