Opera in the Warden's Garden (4th July 2026)
Booking is now open
In July 2026, the New Chamber Opera will perform its annual summer event at New College.
This year the opera will be:
LE PESCATRICI (The Fisher Girls)
By Joseph Haydn
Performed in an English translation by Gilly French and Jeremy Gray.
Musical Director: Steven Devine
Producer: Michael Burden
To book your place(s) please visit the University of Oxford Online Store secure payment facility. Please note that the Store operates best when booking via a home or work PC or laptop.
TICKETS AND FORMAT OF THE EVENING
We ask that you collect your tickets from the New College Cloisters on arrival on your chosen opera night. A member of the New College Development Office will be on hand to pass you them.
There will an interval supper lasting approximately 75 minutes which we will be held in the New College Cloisters. Please bring your own picnic. Chairs and Tables will be provided and they will be marked up with your party name e.g. 'Table for J Smith'. It may be possible to park your car in College whilst attending the opera, but if demand is high, the New College Porters' may ask you to park at the Sports Ground, a short walk away. If you intend to come by car, please let us know by answering the relevant question on the booking form. Priority will be given to those with mobility problems. This is a charity fundraiser event for New College.
The Evening’s Events
6.00pm Drinks in the Cloisters
6.30pm Opera Act I
7.45pm Picnic Interval in the Cloisters (Bring your own picnic)
9.00pm Opera Act II
10.30pm Curtain down
Synopsis:
Haydn’s Le Pescatrici (The Fisher Girls) was the composer’s first full-length opera. The libretto was by Carlo Goldoni, who, with a mixture of comic and serious characters, provided witty social commentary. The story tells the tale of Lindoro, Prince of Sorrento, who is in search of the lost Princess of Benevento; he wishes to marry her and retore her to her rightful throne. She was last seen at the fishing village of Taranto, where two fisher girls – Nerina and Lesbina – live. When the Prince arrives, they both pretend that they are the Princess, in order to catch the his eye. To do so, they ditch their current lovers, the fishermen Fresollino and Burlotto; the men in turn seek revenge by trying to pass off each other’s girlfriends as the Princess. However, by means of a dramatic identification of a jeweled dagger, it emerges that Eurilda is the Princess; she has been in Mastricco’s care all the time.
Le Pescatrici was, like Haydn’s other operas, premiered in the theatre at Eszterháza, the residence of the composer patron; the first performance was on 16 September 1770 to mark the wedding celebrations of Countess Lamberg, Prince Nikolaus Esterházy’s niece, and Count Poggi. The staging was extravagant and a huge success, but the destruction of the vocal and orchestral parts in the opera house fire of 1779 has meant that the surviving work is a reconstruction of Haydn’s original and receives few modern stagings because of it.
Alternative performances:
If you are not able to make either of the performances on Saturday 4th July and Friday 10July 2026, please visit the New Chamber Opera website for alternative nights. The New Chamber Opera page has the detail on how to book in.
We look forward to welcoming you in July 2026
