Are You Sitting Comfortably?

No rainy picnics, no loo queues, no cost–thanks to the wonders of streaming, Claire Jackson can re-create the summer country-house opera season at home

- Claire Jackson

A breeze stirs the alliums. Across the tree-lined lake lies the striking outline of Garsington Opera’s theatre. A man swaggers past the irises, bottle in hand. Inside, the orchestra reaches the climax of The Marriage of Figaro’s overture. I smooth my dress—white, flouncy, impractical and reserved for wafting around the Wormsley Estate. Except that I won’t be this year, as most country-house operas have been cancelled.

Garsington, The Grange Festival, Nevill Holt, Grange Park and Longborough Festival have all been forced to close their doors. At the time of writing, Glyndebourne hopes to open on July 14.

The wobbling man is part of the cast—this ‘pre-scene’ is part of the recording of Garsington’s re-creation of a 2005 production. These extra moments, close-up camera angles and pristine sound quality are a few of the benefits to watching opera on screen.

I’m settled, with a glass of sauvignon blanc, in front of the laptop. Country-house opera companies are finding new ways of engaging with audiences and there’s more opera available to enjoy at home than ever before.