🗓️ 15–18 November 2023 | 📍 Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, North Yorkshire, UK

“Sharon Nicholson-Skeggs has been sorely missed over the past few years but returns here in triumph, injecting her own special brand of inspiration and lifting the evening out of the ordinary.”

— Martin Dreyer, Charles Hutch Press

York Opera returned to the Joseph Rowntree Theatre in November 2023 with a bold, psychologically intense staging of Giuseppe Verdi’s Macbeth, based on the timeless tragedy by William Shakespeare. Combining Verdi’s dark, brooding score with striking visuals and a powerful local cast, this production captivated audiences and brought operatic theatre to thrilling life in York.

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About the Opera

Macbeth is one of Verdi’s earliest operas, first performed in 1847 and revised in 1865. Based on Shakespeare’s play, it follows the journey of a Scottish general whose ambition and prophecy drive him to murder, madness, and ruin. Verdi’s music explores psychological torment, moral collapse, and human frailty with dramatic power and haunting beauty.

Iconic moments include Lady Macbeth’s blood-curdling aria "Vieni! t’affretta!", the witches’ eerie chorus, and the final confrontation between Macbeth and Macduff — blending literary depth with operatic grandeur.

York Opera and the community

This production marked York Opera’s return to Verdi’s Macbeth after more than a decade, showcasing the extraordinary talent within York’s amateur operatic community. Performed at the historic Joseph Rowntree Theatre, the opera brought together experienced singers, emerging performers, and volunteers across York and North Yorkshire.

York Opera’s Interpretation

Directed by John Soper and musically led by Derek Chivers, the production embraced gothic visual themes, psychological staging, and dynamic lighting to underscore the opera’s supernatural tension. The set design drew on stark medieval motifs, with eerie apparitions and shadowy castle corridors that supported the opera’s brooding energy. The witches, appearing as otherworldly figures, added a surreal layer that evoked both fear and fascination.