EMMA CLAYTON looks at a striking photographic exhibition that takes you backstage and behind the scenes at Opera North

TO ANYONE not familiar with opera, it’s a world shrouded in mystery – and the effort that goes into putting a production together is mysterious even to seasoned opera-goers.

This winter, Yorkshire-based photographer Tom Arber raises the curtain on the hidden backstage world of one of the UK’s major opera companies, in a revealing photographic exhibition.

Tom spent a week in residence with Opera North last September, as the Leeds-based company prepared for a new production of Verdi’s La Traviata. Granted full backstage access, Tom captured a series of images which lovingly detail the final stage rehearsals in the run up to the opening night, offering a glimpse of rarely seen moments on and off stage.

The photographs reveal a flurry of action, and a little winding down between scenes, in dressing rooms and backstage corridors, and feature everyone from principal opera singers to costume dressers and stage technicians. The exhibition, called Behind the Curtain, is on display at the White Cloth Gallery in Leeds.

Tom Arber has been working in photography since he started out taking shots of bands while running a recording studio in Leeds. Originally from Norwich, he has been based in Yorkshire for more than a decade. A self-taught photographer, he specialises in observational photography and has recently worked with a wide range of clients including the Howard Assembly Room, English Heritage and Hepworth Wakefield.

Of his work with Opera North, Tom said: “This project has been a fantastic challenge and experience – spending a week with Opera North in stage rehearsals and backstage was just phenomenal. Apart from how much I was able to shoot, just spending so much time capturing the power of the performances and seeing the show come together on stage was amazing.

“So many people are involved behind-the-scenes and such a vast amount of hard work goes into creating the show that the audience sees. I think the images I was able to capture show these vastly different worlds – the glamour and excitement of live opera

on stage and also the intricate workings behind the curtain in such a dynamic company.”

Opera North was founded in 1977 as an offshoot of English National Opera North and its first performance, of Saint-Saëns’s Samson and Delilah, was given on November 15, 1978. Its original intention was to deliver high-quality opera to the northern areas of England which hadn’t, until then, a permanently established opera company.

The company’s name was changed to Opera North in 1981. As England’s national opera company in the north and one of Europe’s leading arts organisations, it produces work that excites, challenges and entertains, touring nationally and to opera houses across Europe in cities such as Prague and Barcelona, and performing at major international festivals.

Now based at Leeds Grand Theatre, the company is internationally renowned as a vibrant company which actively challenges conventional perceptions of opera. Breathing new life into the classics, the company is also a strong advocate of lesser-known works and a champion of musical theatre.

The company collaborates with artists and companies working in a variety of media, including film and visual art. Creativity and the development of individual skills is an ethos running throughout the company, from performers and the chorus and orchestra to the team of technical, production and management staff.

Opera North Education is one of the country’s leading arts education departments; the team delivers a range of workshops and creative projects, encouraging young people and communities to explore the art form of opera.

Speaking of Behind the Curtain, Dominic Gray, projects director at Opera North, said: “We are thrilled to have been able to work so closely with Tom Arber on this project and to be creating an exhibition of his photography at White Cloth Gallery. Tom has captured some remarkable images of Opera North, on and off stage, which for me go right to the heart of what this company is all about – the depth and vibrancy of the creative energy which puts performances on stage night after night. These images depict more of the backstage life of Opera North than has been seen publicly before.”

Behind the Curtain runs at White Cloth Gallery, Aire Street, Leeds, until Sunday, February 1