TEA WITH… SONGS FROM THE SHOWS
Wed 19 June 2024 – 3:00 pm
Wednesday Tea
“The two artists were about the best we have ever heard over the last ten years.”.
“It was a very enjoyable afternoon, the singers and pianist were first class and it was a very intimate session.”
Tuesday Tea – Relaxed Performance*
“It was brilliant. My mum, who has dementia, had one of her best days out in years. It was lovely and warm in the building, the tea was just the right size, and the cakes were delicious… The songs were a good mix of old and new… The old songs took her back. She was in such a good mood afterwards, it was just like having her back.”
Audience Feedback from Previous Years
This increasingly popular Clonter event consists of an hour of music, followed by traditional afternoon tea. The tea itself includes smoked salmon, cream cheese and cucumber, and egg mayonnaise sandwiches, with the crusts cut off, followed by a tiered cake stand presented to your table with an assortment of goodies, which include a freshly baked scone with whipped cream and strawberry jam (the Devon way), orange and walnut flapjack, chocolate cake, and a very juicy strawberry. Accompanied by an all-important cup of tea or fresh coffee, served in rosebud china and ceramic teapots. This is preceded by an hour of musical entertainment, presented by two singers and a pianist, under the swagged red organza and brass chandelier, banqueting style in the intimacy of the Ramsey Room at Clonter.
Clonter also offers a ‘relaxed’ performance – on Tuesday 18th June* – which was introduced to offer people in care homes, or for those being cared for at home, and their carers, something to go to together during the day. This opportunity has also been extended to those with other disabilities. (See below for further details).
Bethan Terry – Soprano
Soprano Bethan Terry is a Junior Fellow at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama. Recently, she toured a staged production of Handel’s Messiah with The Merry Opera Company across the south of the UK. Bethan and regular duo partner, Francesca Lauri, were delighted to return to Italy in March to perform a series of concerts in Venice and Padua. Performance highlights of 2023 include Mozart’s Così fan tutte with North Wales Opera Studio, which featured Bethan’s debut performances as Fiordiligi. Following this, Bethan sang in a Lieder concert curated by Graham Johnson at Milton Court Concert Hall. In June, Bethan was a Young Artist at Leeds Lieder Festival and performed in Clonter Opera’s Spring Opera Showcase. Bethan has also featured on BBC Radio 3 in a special BBC Immersion concert, led by Alison Buchanan, of George Walker art songs. Competition success includes being a finalist in the Hurn Court Singer of the Year Competition, London Song Festival Schubert Prize and Somerset Song Prize. Recently, she was a semi-finalist in the Royal-Overseas League Competition. Bethan is currently part of the Josephine Baker Trust Scheme. Upcoming performances include an Oxford Lieder Young Artist Audition Recital with Francesca Lauri, as well as Haydn’s Nelson Mass and Bach’s Magnificat at the iconic Ely Cathedral as soprano soloist. Bethan has participated in masterclasses with Susan Manoff, Julius Drake, Kate Royal, Elaine Kidd, Nicky Spence, Yvonne Howard, Tobias Truniger, and Toby Spence. Bethan completed the Artist Masters programme at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama with distinction under Professor Janice Chapman and Marie Vassiliou, supported by The Rosaleen McFie Osborn Fund and The Sidney Perry Foundation in 2023. Graduating in 2021, she received a Bachelors degree from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, having studied with Sophie Grimmer.
Tormey Woods – Baritone
Tormey Woods grew up with the stage being where he is most comfortable, having taken acting classes and performed in plays since the age of six. From 2014 to 2019 he was a young artist at the Montpellier National Opera, where he was taught by Nicolas Rivenq. From 2016 onward Tormey also studied singing at the Avignon Conservatoire of Music and Drama with Beatrix Tarquini. In September 2019, Tormey began his BMus in Vocal Studies at the Guildhall School of Music, where he studied with David Pollard until 2020. As of 2023, Tormey is a part of Jean-Paul Fouchécourt’s private studio. Tormey’s operatic roles include the title role in Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” with the Saluzzo Opera Academy, Figaro in “Le Nozze di Figaro” with the Berlin Opera Academy, Hermann and Schlémil in Offenbach’s “Les Contes d’Hoffmann” (PBA Charleroi), Il Re in Respighi’s “La Bella dormente nel Bosco”, Falke in Strauss’ “Die Fledermaus”, Grabuge in “Genevieve de Brabant” and The Bench in Ravel’s “L’Enfant et les Sortilege” (all with the Montpellier National Opera). He was also a member of The Sacrificed in the premiere of Jonathan Dove’s “Le Monstre du Labyrinthe” at the Aix-en-Provence Festival, conducted by Sir Simon Rattle (Grand Theatre d’Aix). In 2023, Tormey was a young artist with the Studio Lyrique du PBA Charleroi, and performed in Clonter Opera’s “Spring Opera Showcase”. In 2019, Tormey was also a young artist on the first edition of the Académie du Festival d’Aix-en-Provence’s residency, “Opera de-ci de-la”, with Anthony Heidweiller, and in 2020 returned as a member of the “Artistes Relais” residency with Mark Withers. In September 2019 he made his British Youth Opera debut as a member of the chorus in the BYO’s production of Rossini’s “La Cenerentola”. Tormey has sung under the baton of esteemed conductors such as Sir. Simon Rattle, Ennio Morricone, Simon Halsey, Peter Leonard and Peter Robinson.
Robin Humphreys – Accompanist
Robin Humphreys is a graduate of the University of Birmingham and a holder of the prestigious Diploma in Professional Performance from the Royal Northern College of Music, where he studied piano accompaniment with David Lloyd. Appearing in concert for over 40 years, he enjoys a successful career as an accompanist and répétiteur (praised as “world-class” by Louise Flind for “Opera Today”), the breadth of his repertoire being reflected in television and radio broadcasts ranging from BBC Radio 3 to Emmerdale! A Principal Lecturer at the RNCM, Robin is a senior music coach within the School of Vocal Studies and Opera, for whom he was also chief répétiteur on the majority of college opera productions from the late 1990s until 2013. He has appeared with the Manchester Camerata in the world première of “A Feast of Fables” by Paul Reade, has been Musical Director for Feelgood Theatre Productions and, from 1990-2000, Opera & Concert Productions (Worldwide) Ltd with whom he toured throughout the Gulf, the Indian sub-continent and the Far East. Robin has a particularly close association with Clonter Opera Theatre in Cheshire, where he regularly works as Assistant Musical Director and Accompanist. For 35 years he was an accompanist member of the British & International Federation of Festivals.
Wednesday 19th June
Tickets £39 (Ramsey Room), £33 (Foyer) – Both to include Concert & Tea, £24 (Foyer) – Concert Only**
Doors Open 2.30pm
Performance 3 – 4pm
Tea Served 4pm
**Please note that this event is banqueting style – You will be sharing a table with others. However, if you would prefer a table for two, this option is available.
Tickets £48 per person (limited availability)
*Relaxed Performance – Tuesday 18th June
A relaxed performance is a show that has been adapted to suit people who might require a more relaxed environment, including (but not limited to) adults or children with learning difficulties, those with autistic spectrum and other sensory communication disorders. This we extend to include those with dementia and other related conditions.
Tickets £23 + 1 carer comes for free
Book Through Box Office Only – 01260 224514 (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 10am – 4pm)