We are backing a pioneering WNO project to put the opera on the streets of Wrexham. WNO are aiming to recruit a total of 10 Community Champions over the next 12 months. The project is part of a three-year programme of work titled Wrexham Street Songs, which WNO is delivering across the county of Wrexham.

One of the main highlights is a “soap opera with a difference” called Nine Stories High which will be influenced by the real life stories of local people attending a series of WNO workshops.

Anthony Lewis said: “We take social responsibility very seriously and we saw this as an opportunity to give back to the community. The arts can be very uplifting and we have several people here who go to the opera on a regular basis but the importance of this project is that it demonstrates that opera can and should be enjoyed by everybody. It’s not an elitist art form and the idea of this opera initiative is to reach out to the community, to make it relevant and accessible”

Claire Cressey, WNO Producer for Nine Stories High says it is a fun way of introducing people to the real thing.  She said: “I think the big surprise will be realising how many parallels there are with television soap operas, which are so familiar to most and actually borrow a lot from traditional opera. Forget fat ladies singing; opera is full of intrigue, scandal, murder.