Tyrone O’Sullivan
Miners’ leader 1984
Tower Colliery

• The subject of the opera is Tower Colliery in South Wales and the dramatic story of the workers' buy-out, which saved the pit from closure. In 1994 Tower Colliery at Hirwaun in South Wales was bought by 240 workers, whose members each put in Ł8,000 (approx.11,676 EUR) in redundancy money. The pit is now the only co-operative – run coalmine in the world and the story is an important piece of European history.
• The opera, TOWER, was composed in 1999 by Alun Hoddinott, Wales’ most eminent composer - it has been written specifically for youth and community involvement. The opera has 7 major principal characters and 13 smaller roles and the tour will include at least 6 performances in England and Wales and at least one in each of the project partner member states.
• The tour will include 6 young professional singers from each project partner country ( Wales + 2 coorganisers + 2 partners) singing together, both as soloists, understudies and chorus, in performances in and outside their own country. This will be a 2 month professional engagment for the young singers with payment at UK rates.
• In addition amateur choirs from each project partner country will take part in their local performance.
• The young professional singers from each project partner will be given opportunities to work with professional repetiteurs from the major opera houses in the UK, thus helping them with contacts and introductions for future work outside their own country.
• The young professional singers from each project partner will be given showcase concert opportunities to perform music from their own country, in venues in the UK and each project partner, giving an opportunity to specifically promote their own national music and composers.
• The opera will be sung in English with subtitles in the language of each partner country. Elements of the opera are in Welsh and the singers from the partner countries will be given tuition by the Welsh members of the cast.
• The tour of TOWER will include children local to each community in a performance, participating alongside professional singers and musicians from the UK and the partner member states.
• Through workshop activities and study notes we will offer community groups and young people in local schools in all partner countries, opportunities for creative work based on the opera itself and the history and future of mining in Europe. Some young professional singers from the opera cast, will be involved in the workshop activities in all the partner countries.
• We aim to encourage a sympathy and understanding for the collective problems shared by mining communities throughout Europe, both past and present. We also aim to explore how new "clean coal" technologies are addressing the world’s CO2 emissions so that the world's enormous resources of coal can be utilised for future generations without contributing to global warming.
• Deadline for applications October 2007. Preparation and educational work to begin Sept/Oct 2008 culminating in performances in 2009

SCO is looking for 4 other partner member States to co-organise this project and plans to make an application to the European Commission’s Culture 2007 funding programme. The deadline for applications is October 2007 and prospective coorganisers and partners are asked to contact Swansea City Opera immediately if they are interested in taking part. The results of the application will be known in April 08.

The jubilant TOWER team after the buy-out.

1. To undertake a major contemporary opera project in five European countries, who will each be a part of the development and execution of the project. Preparation and educational work to begin Sept/Oct 2008 culminating in performances in Sept/Oct 2009.
2. To encourage mobility, circulation and intercultural dialogue between European musicians, by including young professional singers from each project partner singing together in performances outside their own country.
3. To encourage trans-national circulation of contemporary music by touring a Welsh opera within Europe, and giving concert opportunites for singers from all partner states to sing music from their own country in the UK and in each of the other partner countries.
4. Through workshop activities and study notes to offer community groups and young people in local schools in all partner countries, opportunities for creative work based on the opera itself and the history and future of mining in Europe.
5. To initiate an exchange of knowledge, skills, ideas and experience between the five partners, particularly with regard to performance and education practises in the arts.
6. To convey a contemporary image of Wales and promote Welsh cultural heritage through the story of Tower Colliery.
7. To encourage a sympathy and understanding for the collective problems shared by mining communities throughout Europe, both past and present. To explore how new "clean coal" technologies are addressing the world’s CO2 emissions so that the world's enormous resources of coal can be utilised for future generations without contributing to global warming.
8. To offer a first experience of opera to a wide cross section of people from different countries, helping to build alliances between cultures and encourage true EU citizenship, whilst further promoting a positive image of cultural diversity and developing audiences for the future.

The opera ‘Tower’ was written in 1999 by Wales's most eminent composer, Alun Hoddinott, with libretto by BAFTA (The British Academy of Film and Television Arts) award-winner John Owen. The opera has been written specifically for community involvement and, together with the accompanying education programme, has been conceived as a way of offering easier access to contemporary opera, whilst offering audiences a modern image of Wales, in the context of its cultural heritage, and a powerful and moving experience

The Performances
The opera contains parts for 20 characters – 7 major principals and 13 smaller parts. Auditions will be held in each partner state and 6 singers chosen from each country, these singers will form the basis of the professional chorus and will also undertake the smaller principal roles and understudies. In the performance in each of the partner states, an amateur choir from the host country will be added. The orchestration is for 7 musicians – 2 pianos, 4 percussionists and 1 electronic keyboard. Swansea City Opera will provide 7 principal singers 4 choristers and 7 professional orchestral players from the UK, and a production team to stage the performances including conductor, director, lighting director, stage manager & assistant, and wardrobe. Partner organisations will arrange local amateur chorus and children's chorus and assistants for wardrobe and stage management. Although the opera will be sung in English there is one old Welsh song, ‘Myfanwy’, included in one scene. The tune is famous in Wales and is sung in Welsh. The amateur chorus from each partner country will be instructed in the Welsh pronunciation and meaning by the Welsh choristers, thus encouraging members from different countries and cultural backgrounds to explore the boundaries of language within Europe, with an aim of encouraging true EU citizenship. To this end Swansea City Opera will also provide surtitles and surtitle machines for the opera to be shown in the language of the host country.

Educational opportunities
The production itself has been written specifically for community involvement and we will aim to include local choirs and local children in performances. An amateur chorus of 30 male voices plus 10 female voices joining in the final scene, and 20 children aged 8-12 years singing and in small acting roles, are required.

There will be opportunities to involve young people in creative activities based on the opera and study notes and activity sheets will be developed in the UK. These will be translated and re-developed where necessary for use in each country to stimulate this and future work. Study notes will include a broad history of mining in all the European countries involved, thus giving the children an insight into an immensely important part of European history and heritage, and encouraging a sympathy and understanding for the collective problems shared by mining communities throughout Europe, both past and present. They will also explore how new "clean coal" technologies are addressing the world’s CO2 emissions so that the world's enormous resources of coal can be utilised for future generations without contributing to global warming.



Lead organisers commitment
SCO will lead the project, and make all arrangements to bring the production to each country.
SCO will host a 3-day 'project planning' conference in Wales during which time up to three personnel from each of the partners will meet the personnel involved, and the UK education team. The main purpose of the event will be to develop a strategy for the project in Europe that will maximise partnership involvement.
SCO production and education personnel will also make a 3-day trip to each partner to hold auditions and discuss the staging of the production in collaboration with the partner organisations. SCO conductor and education team will make a further one week visit to develop work in the partner countries. They will meet and train the chorus and work with the children and other community groups with an interest in the project, discuss the production requirements with venue staff; and collaborate on the development of the project. SCO will liaise with each partner over marketing and provide artwork for posters and leaflets. As above Swansea City Opera will provide 7 principal singers 4 choristers and 7 professional orchestral players from the UK, and a production team to stage the performances including conductor, director, lighting director, stage manager & assistant, and wardrobe.

Co-organisers commitment
Co organisers will be required to manage and make all arrangements relating to the project in their country including those concerning the performances: hire of venue, marketing, ticket sales, administration and accommodation for the cast, education and production team; and those concerning the educational aspects of the project: translators, translation and organising the chorus and children taking part and promoting the educational aspects to the local community and assistants for wardrobe and stage management.
The co organisers and partners must cover all these costs, but will keep any performance tickets sales from the opera and any additional concerts. Culture 2007 does not allow any ‘in kind’ sums in the budget and the Coorganisers (of which there must be at least 2) must raise at least 5% of the total budget in addition to the above. The cash contribution from additional partners can be flexible.
Representatives from partner countries will be invited to Wales to discuss the Community Education aspects of the project and to develop a plan for the European project. (up to 3 personnel per co-organisation. Flight costs and accommodation/subsistence will be paid).
Study notes will be developed in collaboration with partners and will be available for schools and community groups to explore the opera and stimulate future activity.
The project will culminate in 2009 in each partner country with a performance of ‘Tower', preceded by 2 days rehearsal on stage.

Swansea City Opera
SCO is the City of Swansea’s flagship opera company, touring high quality opera from The Grand Theatre, Swansea to theatres throughout the UK, including Scotland and the Isle of Man. The company undertakes in the region of 50 performances each year and although a relatively new company (launched in May 2004) it has fast cemented a reputation for quality, accessible operatic performances across the UK – regularly grabbing a place in The Times’ newspaper ‘Top Five Must See Opera’ listings. It is funded by City & County of Swansea and receives Arts Council of Wales funding for its outreach and audience development work. Thanks to a grant from the Millennium Commission, the company has been proud to have been associated with the creation of Wales’ first Street opera, through a collaboration with Dragon Arts & Learning in Swansea, an organisation that supports the homeless and socially disadvantaged in the City. This culminated in the World Premiere of From Cars to Mars, an opera on the theme of travel, at the National Waterfront Museum in Swansea.

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