Royal Opera House

Paul Murphy, Alice Farnham Mentors

P.Y. Tchaikovsky - Sleeping Beauty, Act III, No. 28: Pas de deux
D. Sawer - April\March (Excerpts)

The Royal Opera’s Jette Parker Young Artists Programme, in collaboration with National Opera Studio and the Royal Philharmonic Society, runs two Women Conductor courses in 2019 with the vision to provide women conductors with new opportunities to develop their conducting skills and achieve the same status that men conductors have had for decades:

• A two-day ballet course, aimed at conductors with an interest in the specific demands of working with dancers and an orchestra, explores how to communicate musical ideas in collaboration with choreographers. The course explores how conducting for dance differs from approaching operatic and symphonic repertory. The repertory for this course includes extracts from Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet and David Sawer's April\March.

The Women Conductor Course for ballet took place on 18 and 19 May 2019 in the Clore Studio, Royal Opera House. It had six places available, and limited places for observers.

The Royal Opera House aims to ensure that women conductors are positioned alongside men conductors, and to ensure an equitable future for women on the podium in the classical world. These courses are provided free of charge, thanks to the generous support of Oak Foundation, and they are open to both UK and non-UK women applicants.

The Women Conductor courses are part of the Royal Opera House's commitment to promoting diversity in the arts, both on and off the stage. Alongside the Women Conductor courses this Season The Royal Opera is presenting Engender, a celebration of, and platform for, women in opera and an investment in their future.