An Evening with Streetwise Opera & Friends

A celebration of the human voice, raising funds for our work with people affected by homelessness. From the irresistible seduction of Bizet’s Habanera and the ardent sensuality of Purcell’s If Music Be the Food of Love to the blissful lyricism of Schubert’s Seligkeit, this programme brings together some of opera and song’s most loved repertoire. There is the heartbreak of Dido’s When I am Laid in Earth, the drama of Saint-Saëns’ Amour! viens aider ma faiblesse, the haunting simplicity of Britten’s O Waly Waly and the soaring optimism of You’ll Never Walk Alone. The evening also features some of opera’s best-known arias and duets, including Sì, mi chiamano Mimì and O soave fanciulla from Puccini’s La bohème, and Rosina’s dazzling Una voce poco fa from Rossini’s The Barber of Seville. Schubert, Rachmaninoff, Zemlinsky, Bridge, Howells, Copland, Britten and Verdi complete a programme spanning intimacy, drama and exuberance. Bringing this music to life are four exceptional British singers: sopranos Sophie Bevan MBE and Elizabeth Watts, mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnston and tenor Matthew McKinney, accompanied by pianists Sebastian Wybrew and Roelof Temmingh. The evening will also feature the world premiere of Roelof Temmingh’s Dreams Are Also Wounds, setting a poem by Breyten Breytenbach, the South African poet, artist and anti-apartheid activist who spent years in prison during apartheid. Exploring dreams, love, memory, fear and wounds that refuse to heal, the new work for solo voice and chorus will be performed by Matthew McKinney and performers from Streetwise Opera. Streetwise Opera will open the evening with The Spirit of Manchester by Nicolas Lewis, offering a special preview of music being prepared for the company’s 25th anniversary celebrations in 2027. Join us at St John’s Waterloo on Friday 25 September, from 8pm to 10pm, for an evening of opera, song and new music in support of Streetwise Opera. Funds raised will support Streetwise Opera’s work with people who have experienced homelessness in London, Manchester and Nottingham, helping performers build confidence, strengthen identity and form meaningful social connections through music and creativity. St John’s Waterloo is wheelchair accessible, with step-free access to the main performance space, lift access to the crypt and an accessible toilet.