English Touring Opera's - A House in the Moon In Wolverhampton

Spent the last day up in Wolverhampton where English Touring Opera mounted a pioneering community opera project called A House on the Moon. Two hundred local community group members made up of students and adults performed an incredibly moving piece (called a transcontinental lunar fantasy) about the odyssey of refugees from one space to another with only the moon to guide them.

It was the creation of English Touring Opera's Artistic Associate Tim Yealland.

The curtain opened and two hundred children and adults were on the stage of the Wolverhampton Grand Theatre (when do u see 200 people all together on an opera stage!),

The production really showed the incredible talent and resources we have in the U.K. and the importance of creating opportunities for arts participation through active community engagement. It was a proud evening for all involved with the production and the start of what should be a very exciting series of relationships with community groups in the area.

Traveling through midlands you get a real sense of the beautiful country that inspired Tolkien's land of the Shire.