The Welsh National Opera

Back in the distant 1943 Owen, a young Welsh opera lover, decided with a group of friends to start a small opera company. With an open invitation to everyone who had a good voice and loved this kind of music they managed to gather around 60 people from South Wales. People from all the social layers and all professions joined forces and found the national opera house of Wales.

Owen, as music director of the national opera, decided to find a suitable home for this new venture and thus found the Prince of Wales Theatre in Cardiff. Everything was made from scratch, and the protagonists sewed the costumes themselves, while the sets were painted and built until the last minute before the grand opening.

The opera performed at the opening was Cavalleria Rusticana by Mascagni and Pagliacci conducted by Owen. The whole project was welcomed by the local community with enthusiasm. But the Nabucco performance,

which was given in November 1952, made the national opera of Wales stand out and get at the top list of the greatest operas of the United Kingdom. In 1953 WNO began touring starting in Bournemouth and Manchester, while in 1954 they gave their first performances in London where they received great reviews.

In 1975 a fire destroyed the space with the sets and costumes, 30 years of work. However, the performances did not stop and WNO continued performing with borrowed costumes and sets from other UK operas.

There have been many important moments in the history of the national opera of Wales. Nowadays its work is just as important, attracting thousands of visitors every year to witness its spectacular productions.