B R O C
Birmingham Repertory Opera Company
BROC NEWS
THE COALITION KINGS
14th June 2015
Birmingham - BROC's first full scale original work was performed 3 times over the past weekend at the Blue Orange Theatre in Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter. Written and directed by Ben Powell, composed by Ethan Cruxton and set against a backdrop of Ancient Rome, it satirized the UK Coalition Government which existed between 2010 and 2015.
With a rebellion in Gaul Crushed, two emperors ascend to the throne to reunite the fractured Rome. As both vie for the love of the people, one falls head-over-heals for a slave gril, while the other plots a brutal massacre of her people. Before long, it's more than just rival Caesars baying for each other's blood, and everyone from slave to noble has their eyes on the laural wreath.
THE RUDDIGORE AFFAIR
26th October 2014
Birmingham - Erdington Methodist Church yesterday saw 2 performances of 'The Ruddigore Affair', a highly original take of Gilbert & Sullivan's 'Ruddigore'. Set against a backdrop of the British Media's phone hacking scandal and incorporating a view of Essex life, it follows the cursed family that own 'The Ruddigore Press' as they are forced to ruin a public figure's reputation in each week's edition or perish at the ghostly hands of all the previous editors. Despard, the current editor gained the post after his elder, Gordon, brother died, but, unknown to him, Gordon is alive and posing as a food critic so as to avoid the horrible duties of editor. However, reality TV star Richard Essex, fashion icon Rose Maybud, troubled ageing celebrity 'Mad' Margeret and a chorus of paparazzi combine to expose Gordon for whom he really his.
BROC'S FIRST ORIGINAL WORK HIGHLY PRAISED
29th April 2014
Birmingham - The Old Joint Stock Theatre saw the first performances of Ethan Cruxton's new show The Cardinal on Saturday April 26th, with lively audiences for both the matinee and evening shows. The Cardinal, a Carry On-esque comedy set in a Catholic Girls' School, was performed alongside Sullivan and Burnand's classic farce Cox & Box, which had been reimagined in 1920s/30s New York. The audience were kept laughing throughout both shows, with many praising the vibrant performances and well-performed songs, as well as Ethan's clever script and excellent songwriting for The Cardinal. Photos from the performance can be seen under 'Past Productions'.
LOCAL OPERA COMPANY STAGE INAUGURAL CONCERT
6th October 2013
Birmingham - The newly founded Birmingham Repertory Opera Company (BROC) will present a concert of operetta favourites in Operetta! The Concert at the Old Joint Stock Theatre on 20th October 2013. The concert will feature songs from a wide range of musical sources, from Mozart to the modern day, and will be the society’s first event in the Birmingham area following their founding earlier this year and two very successful concerts outside of the city. Tickets will cost £8 (or £7 for concessions) and are available directly from the company by emailing broc.contact@gmail.com.
BROC’s next project is their first fully staged production, to be performed in April 2014 – an original work by Ethan Cruxton The Cardinal and a new version of Burnand and Sullivan’s Cox & Box by Ben Powell. Auditions for this will be on the 27th October 2013 from 1pm until 5pm at Erdingon Methodist Church. The Cardinal deals with the goings on at a Catholic Sixth Form College. The students & staff are successful academically, but are held captive emotionally by Sister Jeptha, their domineering headmistress, who believes men are evil and are mere temptations for the girls and staff in her care. However, several staff and students are involved with men, and with the threat of a visit from Cardinal Hale, Jeptha struggles to control her staff and students. Cox and Box is about two men, Cox the hatter and Box the printer, who have unknowingly been living in the same room while their landlord, Bouncer, charges Cox rent at night, and Box during the day. When they happen to meet, they are forced to spend the day together, and go from hating one another to being friends. When they discover that they were both engaged to the same woman, their conflict starts anew as neither wants to marry Penelope-Anne and they try to force the other to take her. They fight it out until fate intervenes once more, and they become very close friends.
BROC is a semi-professional opera company formed by some of the founding members of the University of Birmingham Gilbert & Sullivan Society, which specialises in performing new and original works by emerging young composers. Some numbers by local young composer, 23 year old Ethan Cruxton, will be featured in this concert. Cruxton’s work has previously been performed by the University of Birmingham Gilbert and Sullivan Society, who staged a production of his first opera, The New Savoyards, in 2011. The performers are also young, local talent, who are being nurtured by BROC’s production team and assisted in developing their own skills. Many of them started singing opera when studying at university and have continued their love of music with BROC.