Opera Holland Park: Opera for the people

Passing through Holland Park's scented pathways, between copses filled with birdsong, wild flower meadows and ornamental gardens, it is easy for forget that you are just minutes away from Kensington High Street. And at the heart of this idyll stands the Holland Park Theatre, an open-air structure covered with a permanent canopy, where each summer for the past 15 years, audiences have been able to enjoy natural air conditioning while watching a wide range of quality opera productions as the sun sets, with only the cries of peacocks and the odd aeroplane to interrupt.

More surprising is that this classy operation is run on a relatively small budget and is brought lovingly to life each year by just two people - James Clutton and Mike Volpe. The fortysomething pair organise the festival in their capacity as employees of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea - probably the only UK borough to have an opera department - with Clutton in charge of production (with just two full-time staff) and Volpe the building and marketing manager. And as we sip tea on the terrace gazing down the grassy slopes towards town, it becomes apparent that it would be hard to find two more passionate and unpretentious devotees to the task of disseminating opera.

Both are Londoners, neither originally from an opera background. Volpe is 'an Italian boy from Shepherd's Bush', sporting muscles, tattoos and Cockney front, while Clutton is more reflective and
softly spoken, yet they clearly get on and are united in a mission to share the 'life moments' they have witnessed on stage over the years.

They laugh easily, such as in recalling how when Clutton came for his job interview in 2000, they spent the occasion discussing football (Spurs and Chelsea, respectively), such that Volpe forget to check if the prospective candidate had worked in opera before. He hadn't - Clutton's background was in West End shows - but he brought with him a production rigour to an artform that he has come to love as much as his collegue. 'I think part of a producer's job,' he says, 'is to be a glorified audience member and just see what they are going to see.'

The pair, more resembling night-club bouncers than opera impresarios, are determined that opera really is for everyone. And yet they refuse to patronise, each season presenting a few favourites, a few obscurities from name composers and at least one gem from a less well-known one. 'It would be easy to just knock out Bohèmes, Toscas and Carmens,' says Clutton, 'but we want to progress.'

This mission includes expanding the opera season into a broader arts festival, to include literary events, and to help smaller companies - simply born of a desire to advance the wonderful world of opera.

Accessibility is a key word across the arts, but for this pair it is clearly more than just a business obligation. 'Accessibility is more than just price,' explains Volpe. 'We can tick that box if we have to -we give 1,700 free tickets away (1,200 to kids aged nine to 18 and 500 to people over 60). Then there are 4,000 Inspire seats for £12. And they're not crap seats - there aren't any crap seats! But accessibility is about more than that; it is about how you feel. This country has built an enormous structure around opera as a socially elite pastime, but we think a lot of that really is bullshit.'

So what is their secret? They just trust that a down-to-earth approach will inspire open-minded newcomers and seasoned opera-goers alike. 'We are not goin g to do it all in English, or in a hip hop version - we are going to do it properly, but we're are just going to take it easy.'

'It is a very visceral experience watching opera here,' continues Volpe. 'It is a 1,000-seater but it feels a lot smaller; the stage is as wide as the seating and you are often overwhelmed by what happens on it.' Clutton nods silently; it is a mutual sentiment. 'You hear about people's “moments” in their lives, when their children are born for instance, but after doing 22 bloody years of this, I can honestly say that there are things that are pin-sharp in my head of moments here - of this make-believe that people have created on a stage -which have brought up all sorts of issues in my life. It is that basic… Just come and see it.'

Opera Holland Park's 2011 season runs June 7-Aug 13. See www.operahollandpark.com.

2011 Season Highlights: Don Pasquale by Donizetti (June 7-24); L'amico Fritz by Mascagni; (June 10-25); Le nozze di Figaro by Mozart (July 2-16) La rondine by Puccini (July 5-17); Rigoletto by Verdi (July 26-Aug13); La Wally by Catalani (July 29-Aug 12); Fantastic Mr Fox by Picker (July 14-Aug 13).