The Top Floor Flat

A little over a week ago I took a walk over to my local and possibly favourite London park, Holland Park for a little fresh air. I’ve posted about Holland Park before but had still, disappointingly, not made it to the Holland Park Opera, a covered open air theatre in the centre of the park. Yet not long after I had camped myself in the middle of a rose garden I heard the unmistakable sounds of an orchestra and a woman in a viking helmet – it was the Holland Park Opera open house and the doors had been thrown open to allow the likes of me, and the neighbourhood children, into the opera to see demonstrations of performances, old costumes, behind the scenes on the site and (this was more exciting for the children than for me) the in-costume star of Angelina Ballerina.

I had missed most of the singing but was quite impressed by the costumes on display as well as the theatre itself. As I write this, I’m reminded that I only have another day or two to see the last of this season’s performances so it seems a bit unlikely I’ll get the full Holland Park Opera experience but in comparison to what was to come on the open house day that may be ok.

After a tour of the opera house and grounds, I heard the distinct sound of an orchestra warming up. I took a seat right at the front of the theatre while the orchestra prepared, unsure of what to expect. It seemed they were a bit apprehensive themselves and the reason became clear when a line of two dozen children appeared out of the wings, led by a grinning conductor. It seemed that I had also missed out on a conducting lesson and now, the mini maestros were ready for their thirty seconds of fame while they picked one of three songs (Overture for William Tell, the Can Can or Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro) in which to conduct the rest of the orchestra.

A minor amount of chaos ensued. The highly trained orchestra, much to the delight of the children conducting and the spectators, followed along precisely with the amateur conductors – meaning that rarely did the piece actually stay on tempo or sound much like the familiar composition it was supposed to be. Everyone was having a fantastic time although none seemingly so much as the main conductor himself who looked positively thrilled.

It was a fantastic afternoon and although I didn’t get a chance to lead the orchestra myself, I’m so happy to have been a small part of the Holland Park Opera open house and see first hand the amazing arts facilities I have just beyond my front door.