Opera Theatre Europe - Opera Theatre Europe

Opera Theatre Europe (opera-te) is a new opera company, founded with the aim of bringing operas to the British public which are not found on the programming menu of other UK opera companies. Our first production, the European premiere of Tobias Picker’s Thérèse Raquin, took place at the Linbury Theatre at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in March 2006.

IARLAITH CARTER Executive Director

Born in Ireland, Iarlaith Carter studied piano, violin and conducting in the DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama. He holds a degree in Musicology from Trinity College Dublin where he was a Choral Scholar and conductor of the University Symphony Orchestra. He was also a national first-prizewinner on multiple occasions in traditional Irish flute and sean-nós singing at the All-Ireland Fleadh.

Following a period as Associate Producer with Andrew McKinnon Presentations in Sydney (where his projects included nationwide tours of Juan de Marcos’ Afro-Cuban All-Stars and of legendary harmonica player Larry Adler) he returned to Ireland to take up posts with the Royal Irish Academy of Music and the Festival of Music in Great Irish Houses. In 2002 he joined Robert Gilder & Co Artist Management and since 2004 has been Senior Artist Manager. He continues to work concurrently in this post and with opera-te.

LEE BLAKELEY Artistic Director

Lee Blakeley was born in Yorkshire, England. He studied directing, acting and singing at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and at Glasgow University.

Whilst studying he directed several drama productions, winning the Gordon Bottomley Directing Award. He also assisted Philip Prowse at the Glasgow Citizens' Theatre and David McVicar at the RSAMD in drama and opera productions. On leaving College, he directed his first music theatre production - GIGI - in Glasgow. He went on to gain experience as Company Manager and Producer of several shows.

Lee Blakeley moved to London in 1996, where he directed a student première of A GRAND NIGHT FOR SINGING at the Royal Schools of Music. He also researched the acclaimed CD-ROM, THE ART OF SINGING. Other projects as dramaturg include LES CONTES D'HOFFMANN for De Vlaamse Opera, a new production of BILLY BUDD at the Lyric Opera Chicago and script reading and development for ACT Theatres in London's West End.

For Opera North, Lee directed a "90 MINUTE DON GIOVANNI" in Newcastle in 1999. In 2000 he assisted David McVicar in the Glyndebourne Touring Opera production of LA BOHEME for which he also produced the English-language surtitled version seen on Channel 4 television on Christmas Day, later revised for performances by Scottish Opera in 2004. He devised and directed DAMNED AND DIVINE at the Coliseum for the English National Opera Studio in 2000.

In 2001 he re-staged MANON for Opera New Zealand, directed the world première production of Handel's CLORI, TIRSI E FILENO in London's Heaven club for Covent Garden Festival and directed workshop performances at the Royal Scottish Academy where he directed Cavalli's LA CALISTO in 2002. That year began with a contemporary opera joint project for the English National Opera Studio and the National Opera Studio and he later revived CARMEN for Glyndebourne Touring Opera. He directed LE NOZZE DI FIGARO for British Youth Opera at London's South Bank that autumn.

In 2003 he worked on DIE ZAUBERFLÖTE with David McVicar at the Royal Opera House (also revival director later in 2003) and revived LES CONTES D'HOFFMANN in Antwerp and MANON for Houston Grand Opera. Productions in 2004 have included FAUST (with David McVicar) and its highly praised revival at the ROH; the revival of CARMEN for Glyndebourne Festival and later in Tenerife.

Most recent engagements include a new production of MERRY WIDOW for De Vlaamse Opera in Antwerp and Ghent; the European premiere of Tobias Picker's THERESE RAQUIN for opera-te at the Linbury Studio/Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; new productions of DIE FLEDERMAUS and Judith Weir’s A NIGHT AT THE CHINESE OPERAfor Scottish Opera; THE TURN OF THE SCREW for the British Council in Macedonia; and RUSALKA for the Wexford Festival in Ireland. He was awarded a Winston Churchill Travelling Fellowship which he took in Autumn 2007, spending time with the opera companies of San Francisco and Seattle.