Two positions from ROH2's eight-strong team have been made redundant, including that of head of opera development, a role held by John Lloyd Davies. The post of manager of the On the Road programme, which oversaw projects around the UK, has also been axed.
Following Davies' redundancy, an ROH spokeswoman said director of opera Kasper Holten would head the team responsible for new operatic work, to run in the Linbury Studio Theatre and Clore Studio - spaces traditionally associated with ROH2. Holten will work alongside John Fulljames, the ROH's new associate director of opera, described as having a background in "innovative opera". Kate Herbert, who filled in for Duthie as head of ROH2 while she was on maternity leave, will now work under Holten to programme work for these spaces.
Lifetime Achievement - Five-time Oscar-winner John Williams is to be honoured with a lifetime achievement award at the Classic Brit awards in October. The Hollywood composer has written scores for films including Jaws, Star Wars, Superman, Schindler's List and War Horse.
With 47 Academy Award nominations, Williams is the second most nominated person after Walt Disney. Co-chairman of the Classic Brit awards committee, Dickon Stainer, said, "John Williams has crafted some of the most memorable film scores for over half a century." Williams, who celebrated his eightieth birthday in February, has - on top of his five Oscars - won four Golden Globes, seven Baftas and 21 Grammy awards.
Folk News - Folk rockers Fairport Convention celebrated their 45th anniversary with their 33rd annual Cropredy Festival in grand style. And despite exceptionally wet weather recently, the 175-acre farmland site in Oxfordshire remained in perfect condition with no sign of the mud and flooding that caused problems and cancellations at festivals earlier this summer.
"Attendance at Cropredy has held up very well given the current economic climate," says Simon Nicol, Fairport founder-member and festival co-organiser. "Advance ticket sales were surprisingly strong and the sunshine boosted numbers over the weekend. Everything ran smoothly, the audience had a fine time, and the weather was about as good as it gets."
Festival director Gareth Williams adds, "The festival was a great success again. Were it not for the very wet weeks immediately before we opened we might have sold out. But even though there were a few tickets left at the end of the day, we are very pleased with sales this year. More importantly, though, we're delighted our festival-goers enjoyed such a great weekend."
(Jim Evans)
