Illustrator Jane Webster and documentary photographer Andrew Hebden have been busy behind the scenes recording WNO’s Autumn tour.

Andrew has captured moments of relaxation and preparation in the corridors and dressing rooms with members of WNO Chorus and Extra Chorus appearing in a new production of Otello. Whilst Jane has produced a series of illustrations showing the Wigs and Make-Up team in action before curtain goes up, washing wigs and checking each singer’s individual make-up bag to ensure everything is in place ready for a transformation into a new character.

Some of Jane’s drawings will be exhibited in Spring 2009 in London; Andrew’s evocative black and white photographs will be updated regularly on the website.

Look out for new photographs from the New Theatre, Oxford, in December, the last venue on WNO’s current tour. Jane and Andrew are two contributors to WNO Nexus, a new initiative documenting the life of the Company over the next 12 months.

What has captured the imagination of each of the participants is the variety of work generated by WNO throughout the year, and not necessarily for the mainstage. WNO NEXUS will be recording everything from a groundbreaking project with ex-offenders in a Valleys town, culminating in performances on board local trains, to a fundraising initiative drawing together the worlds of opera and racing.

The Marriage of Figaro – HMVD 5 72880 2
Courtesy of EMI Classics www.emiclassics.com
Sir Geraint Evans/Heather Harper/English Chamber Orchestra/Daniel Barenboim
16 Overture