If Opera 2026
Thursday 06 - Sunday 16 August
Church Farm, Wingfield
CARMEN
Georges Bizet
06 | 08 | 12 | 15 August
THE CHOCOLATE SOLDIER
Oscar Straus
11 | 13 | 14 August
A TOAST TO THE TAVERN
Vache Baroque
07 August
PICNIC PROM
Syd Lawrence Orchestra
16 August
In 2026, we celebrate 30 incredible years! To mark this milestone, we will be welcoming back some of the artists who helped shape our story to present a season that’s as daring, heartfelt and joyful as ever.
Our thirtieth anniversary year is a season of celebration, nostalgia and a few surprises along the way! Opera’s archetypal femme fatale Carmen makes her first ever appearance with us, sung by the sensational Russian songstress, Alyona Abramova, who wowed our audiences last season. This year’s sparkling comedy is Viennese to its core – not Johann, but Oscar Straus, and his hilarious operetta The Chocolate Soldier staged by our old friends from Opera della Luna, is guaranteed to be an evening of comic capers, romantic entanglements and exquisitely naughty music.
Our celebrations continue with the Vache Baroque and an evening of rousing 17th century drinking songs, jigs and shanties, led by Baroque fiddler, singer and impresario, Tom Guthrie (Lucia di Lammermoor, 2024). And for our final fling, the fabulous Syd Lawrence Orchestra will see our season out in style.
Church Farm, Wingfield
Following the success of our 2025 season, we are thrilled to return to the home of long-standing If Opera Patrons, David and Fiona Robinson, for our 2026 season. Secluded and peaceful, these bucolic gardens will once again offer plenty of picturesque picnic spots as well as hosting our Saddlespan theatre, pop-up bar, Patron’s lawn and Picnic Canopy alongside our sell-out restaurant, The Cowshed by Homewood.