Gianni Schicchi
(or Where There’s A Will)
Puccini reimagined by Hannah Kumari & Vahan Salorian, Directed by PJ Harris.
OperaUpClose present a new version of a classic, rewritten by Hannah Kumari & re-orchestrated by Vahan Salorian.
Featuring some of the most famous music in opera and inspired by wildly popular modern-day ‘whodunnits’ such as The White Lotus and Knives Out, Gianni Schicchi (or Where There’s A Will) brings Puccini roaring into the 21st Century.
Set in the fictional seaside town of Harmouth, a wealthy second-home owner is throwing one last seasonal soirée. As the evening quickly unravels, the local ‘fixer’ Gianni Schicchi enters the fray and things go from bad to worse for the entitled liberal elite. Who should be held to account in a world where everyone is out for themselves?
A stellar cast bring this brilliantly subversive and satirical take on Puccini’s family farce to the stage under the ‘sharp and intelligent’ direction of 2025 Sky Arts Award winner PJ Harris.
As part of our commitment to finding new and creative ways to enhance the theatrical experience for all, Gianni Schicchi (or Where There’s A Will) integrates captions into the set design, using fonts, colour and animation to enhance text as a key part of the visual language and storytelling.
The show is performed in English.
OperaUpClose in association with Park Theatre.
Original production co-produced with Mayflower Southampton.
“We’re reinventing how opera is made”
Simon Hewitt-Jones, Leader/Violin/Witness
“A vibrant, contemporary and accessible new staging”
Adam Knight, Blackpool Grand
“It's genuinely very funny and great storytelling”
Vahan Salorion, Composer.
Running Time
65 Minutes (approximately)
Accessibility
Please get in touch for more information about accessibility in all our touring venues.
Creatively captioned throughout as part of the production design
Creative Team
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Vahan is a composer and orchestrator from Lancashire, now living in London. His music has been described as “truly genre breaking” (Bachtrack) and “subtly and beautifully achieved” (Opera Magazine). A graduate of The Guildhall School of Music and Drama, he has worked extensively in music for the stage as well as the concert hall and has had his pieces performed in the UK, internationally and on television. His first major work, ‘Boys of Paradise’ (2017) was recently revived with a new Portuguese translation in Lisbon (2025). His opera, ‘Goldilocks and the Three Little Pigs’, was hailed as a “swinish pearl of an opera” in The Observer. Both productions explore the immersive aspects of music theatre in unconventional spaces. He has been commissioned by companies such as Tete a Tete, The Opera Story, ETO, ENO and BBC4 and collaborated with award winning artists like performer and writer Bryony Kimmings, screenwriter Birgitta Liljedahl and clarinettist Peter Cigleris.
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Hannah Kumari is a writer and former actor based in South East London. She has been commissioned by companies including Sky Arts, Coventry City of Culture, Exeter Northcott Theatre, The Wardrobe Ensemble and Eastern Angles Theatre Company. Her acclaimed one-woman show ENG-ER-LAND toured to over 30 venues from 2021-2023 and returns to the King’s Head’s new theatre this Summer. Hannah is thrilled to be working with OperaUpClose for the first time on Puccini’s perfect one act Opera, Gianni Schicchi.
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PJ is a multi-award-winning British stage director and theatre-maker originally from the Midlands. Since being listed as “one to watch” by the BBC in 2015, his work has taken him across Europe including the Royal Opera House, Glyndebourne, Royal Swedish Opera, Opéra de Lyon, Norwegian National Opera, Scottish Opera and Polish National Opera. In 2020, he directed the first ever socially distanced drive-in production of La bohème for English National Opera, broadcast on Sky Arts and awarded a BAFTA in 2021. His recent production of Simon Boccanegra for Opera North won the 2025 Sky Arts Award. Other highlights include the world premiere of Gods of the Game at Grange Park Opera, also broadcast on Sky Arts. Alongside Hannah Kumari, PJ is the co-founder and Creative Director of coalign, an arts organisation dedicated to engaging new audiences for opera through new music and new writing.
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Set & Costume Designer
Anna Yates’ opera credits include Pimpinone (Linbury Theatre, Royal Ballet and Opera, Covent Garden), The Marriage of Figaro (Luzerner Theater), The Magic Flute (Royal Conservatoire of Scotland), Idomeneo (RCS), L’Etoile (RCS), The Medium and Three Decembers (RCS), Orpheus in the Underworld (Royal College of Music), Britten, Debussy and Ravel (RCM), Brundibar (Opera North Youth Company), Riders to the Sea and Cupboard Love (Byre Opera). Her theatre credits include Scenes from the Climate Era (The Gate) The Forsyte Saga (The Park Theatre), Abigail’s Party (Northern Stage and tour), Glee & Me (Royal Exchange Manchester), Totentanz (Shotput at Tramway, Glasgow and tour), Ferguson and Barton (Shotput at Cumbernauld theatre and tour) and Berberian Sound Studio (Donmar, as co-designer), Elevenses (Somerset House) and Kafka’s Quest (Theatre for the New City, New York). Associate design credits include Figures in Extinction 2.0 (Complicité/Nederlands Dans Theater), Rusalka (ROH), La Boheme (ENO Drive & Live), The Antipodes (National Theatre) and Duchess of Malfi (Almeida). She trained at Tisch School of the Arts, NYU (MFA), and the University of Sydney (BA).
Cast
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Stephanie Yim is a London based clarinettist. She has guested with orchestras such as the BBC Philharmonic, Chineke!, Hallé, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and Ulster Orchestra. Stephanie also works with Music in the Round, Voces8, Brigantes and Waterperry Opera amongst others. In 2024, she made her concerto debut with Chineke! at the Southbank Centre. She cofounded the Meliora Collective in 2021, an award winning flexi ensemble that competed in the Royal Overseas League Semi Final in 2025.
Stephanie graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 2020. Prior to this, she studied at the Hochschule für Musik Frankfurt, RNCM and Kunst Universität Graz.
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Rachel Sampley is a London-based lighting and video designer.
Her previous work includes:Barrier(s) (The National Theatre), Perfect Show for Rachel (The Barbican), The Great Gatsby (Immersive Everywhere), The Suspicions of Mr Whicher (The Watermill Theatre), Bossy (Zoo Co; Southbank Centre) and Cassie and the Lights (59E59, Off Broadway, NY). Opal Fruits (Bristol Old Vic, Pleasance Edinburgh) (Immersive LDN: Seoul, Korea: Theatre Clwyd), Wreckage (Turbine Theatre), and Breeding (King’s Head Theatre - Offie nominated for Lighting Design}
She has an MA in Advanced Theatre Practice from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama.
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Felicity trained at the RNCM, and enjoys a busy career spanning opera, oratorio, education, and community engagement projects.
She has sung roles at ENO, West Green House Opera, Kentish Opera, and of course, OperaUpClose! Recent performances include Mary Livingston Mary, Queen of Scots (ENO), Marcellina The Marriage of Figaro (Tobacco Factory), Meg Page Falstaff (West Green), with oratorios including Elgar The Dream of Gerontius, Verdi Requiem and Mendelssohn Elijah. She has also performed as a soloist with the BBC Concert Orchestra in the Myths and Legends Prom at the Royal Albert Hall and A New Year’s Celebration at Saffron Hall.
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Simon Hewitt Jones is an English violinist known for his cross-disciplinary work as a performer, teacher, writer, and producer. He performs with the London Concertante and leads orchestras including Guildford Symphony and Cambridge Philharmonic.
His diverse projects span genres from classical to rock, and include recordings for Naxos and Hyperion. His first chamber music album won a BBC Premiere award, and he has recorded as a session musician for artists like Ed Sheeran and Massive Attack.
A passionate educator, he founded ViolinSchool (now StringSchool) and has worked extensively in the UK, Ireland, and Palestine. He also consults for major film/TV productions and was a researcher at the Royal Academy of Music.
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Anglo-Irish baritone Dan D'Souza has been described in the Guardian as "heroically rich-toned" and in the Times as "impressively charismatic". He is a Harewood Artist at English National Opera where he has performed Belcore Elixir of Love and Sid Albert Herring. He has recently sung Flemish Deputy Don Carlo for Royal Ballet and Opera, Angelotti Tosca for Grange Festival, and Buff The Impresario for Buxton International Festival.
Dan has performed in concert with the Philharmonia, Britten Sinfonia, La Nuova Musica, English Baroque Soloists, and RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra. He is an Exceptional Prize winner at the Tenor Viñas Competition and winner of the Dame Patricia Routledge English Song Competition.
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Valerie Barr is a Scottish accordionist acclaimed for her versatility across classical and contemporary stages. Currently based in Leeds, she has performed with leading orchestras such as BBC Philharmonic, the Hallé and Opera North, and she is passionate about chamber music and collaborative performance.
She has worked with renowned theatre companies including Shakespeare’s Globe and Gecko Theatre, and has recently toured with prestigious productions such as The F*ggots and Their Friends Between Revolutions by Ted Huffman & Philip Venables (Ruhrtriennale, Park Avenue Armory NYC) and Marina Abramović's latest production, Balkan Erotic Epic (Factory International Manchester, Gran Teatre del Liceu Barcelona). She studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland with Djordje Gajic.
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Originally from South Wales, Jess moved to London to study double bass at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and later the Royal Academy of Music. She spends most of her time playing for musical theatre bands, most recently in The Addams Family UK Tour and the Les Misérables World Arena Tour. She also enjoys playing in the opera pit and has played with the London Philharmonic Orchestra at the Glyndebourne Opera House in their production of Tristan and Isolde.
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Born in Belfast, Emma Morwood studied at the University of Edinburgh and the Royal Northern College of Music, where she was a major award winner. Described as ‘radiant’ (The Sunday Times). ‘enchanting’ (The Times), ‘superlative’ (Opera Magazine) and ‘brilliant’ (The Telegraph), Emma has performed with some of Europe's finest orchestras and conductors.
Recent concert highlights include Handel Messiah in Halle, Germany; Mozart C Minor Mass in Malaga; and concerts with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and the Ulster Orchestra.
Opera roles include Italian Singer in Capriccio for Edinburgh International Festival; Dido in Dido and Aeneas with Scots Opera Project; Despina in Mozart's Cosí fan tutte (Irish National Opera); and Musetta in Northern Ireland Opera's critically acclaimed production of La bohème.
As well as being a qualified paraglider pilot, Emma has two children, Lucas and Orla, and in her spare time enjoys indoor bouldering, cold water swimming and dressmaking.
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Irish bass John Molloy’s recent roles include Basilio THE BARBER OF SEVILLE, Quince A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, and the Pawnbroker MARX IN LONDON with Scottish Opera, Wilfred Shadbolt THE YOEMEN OF THE GUARD for English National Opera, Alfonso COSI FAN TUTTE for Longborough Festival Opera, Il Barone di Waldek EDMEA for the Wexford Festival and Kecal THE BARTERED BRIDE, Dulcamara L’ELISIR D’AMORE, Angelotti TOSCA, Colline LA BOHEME and the Four Villains LES CONTES D’HOFFMANN for Irish National Opera. Other engagements include Swallow PETER GRIMES with the Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Alidoro LA CENERENTOLA for Opera de Rouen, Leporello DON GIOVANNI for NI Opera and Masetto DON GIOVANNI with English National Opera.
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British-Argentine Soprano Ceferina Penny was a Young Artist at the National Opera Studio 24/25. Previously, she completed her undergraduate and master’s studies at the Royal College of Music.
Upon beginning her studies, she made her professional debut with ENO as The Slave Salome, at the London Coliseum. In 2023, Ceferina performed Susanna Le Nozze di Figaro, with Westminster Opera Company.
As a Britten Pears Young Artist 24/25, Ceferina won the Elizabeth Harwood Memorial Award and this year returned to give a recital as part of the Aldeburgh Festival. This Autumn, she will join Scottish Opera for their Opera Highlights tour.
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Northern Irish tenor Aaron O’Hare has performed with leading opera companies across the UK and Ireland. Recent highlights include Spoletta (Tosca, Northern Ireland Opera), the Fourth Jew (Salome, Irish National Opera), Monsieur Triquet (Eugene Onegin, NI Opera), Alfred (Die Fledermaus, INO), and Adam (The Walk from the Garden, Opera Collective Ireland).
As an Associate Artist with Welsh National Opera (2020–2022), Aaron sang Don Giovanni on tour, Stárek (Jenůfa), and the March Hare/White Knight (Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland). He has also appeared as Schaunard (La bohème, NI Opera), and as Mike (I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky, Opéra de Lyon).
Aaron studied at the University of Ulster and the Royal Northern College of Music under Matthew Best. He won Northern Ireland Opera’s Festival of Voice competition and is a recipient of the BBC NI and Arts Council NI Young Musician’s Platform Award.
Gianni Schicchi
(or Where There’s A Will)
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