Top Quality Opera for All

Advantages: Beautifully produced, top quality singing
Disadvantages: None

...As an aspiring opera singer I am keen to get to see as much opera as I possibly can and to get the best experience I can for the least amount of money possible! The Royal Opera House is almost certainly the most well known opera house in Britain and I look forward to every production I see there, knowing that it will be a real treat for the ears and the eyes! - Booking tickets - First things first, how to book tickets. You may be under the impression that tickets for the opera are hugely expensive and yes, for certain seats they are - for the big Wagnerian productions the best seats will go for upwards of £200! However, seats in the Ampitheatre are far more reasonably priced (around £22-30) and if you're willing to stand then tickets can be as low as £5 (I stood last weekend and it's really not as bad as it sounds, in fact the view...

bubblegum_princess 04.11.2008 · Read review
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Review of Royal Opera House London

The Opera House

Advantages: Wasn't expensive
Disadvantages: Hour tour wasn't long enough

...SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE Sydney Opera house is located on the eastern headland of Circular Quay just a few minutes from the train station. It is made up of 1,056,000 Swedish tiles on the roof, which are off white and are self-cleaning. Construction began in 1959 after a Danish architect Jorn Utzon won an international design competition for the $7 million building. In 1966 Utzon quit after political interference leaving Australian architects to design the interior costing $102million. He has never seen the building completed. Utzon who is now in his eighties has announced to refurbish the interior and he has high hopes that it will be full of colour rather than a black hole. His son comes to Australia to oversee any developments. It was finally was completed against all odds and after several disagreements in 1973. It now is one...

DeniseKelly40 24.09.2007 (23.04.2008) · Read review
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Review of Sydney Opera House

THIS OLD HOUSE

Advantages: It's available to all of you
Disadvantages: To me none

...This is one of my favourite places beacuse when I enter this building I know that all lifes worries are left on the doorstep I am entering a building that is going to present me with the best of talents that are on offer in the world today. HISTORY OF THE HOUSE The Royal Opera House is situated in London's Covent Garden it first opened it's doors in December 1732. This site has been the home of three differnent theatres. the first was mainly a playhouse. The first serious music to be performed here were operas by Handel who played here from 1735 to his death in 1759. He left his organ to the theatre when he died but sadly this was destroyed by a fire in 1808. Is that not a tragedy? The theatre was then rebuilt and it opened it's doors in 1809 again it was not just for the performances of Ballet and Opera, the exclusive rights...

mrsatchmo 02.05.2005 · Read review
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Review of Royal Opera House London

Buxton Opera House - a vast range of shows for all ages

Advantages: Comfortable seats, plenty of leg room.
Disadvantages: None

...While on holiday in the Peak District I went to see a play at this beautiful Edwardian theatre. It is located in The Square next to the Pavilion Gardens and is a 900 seated opera house. For Sat Nav users the post code is SK17 6XN. It was originally built in 1903 and of Frank Matcham's design and was fully restored in 2001. It is a community theatre, catering for a wide range of tastes and ages and presents around 450 performances each year varying from opera, pantomine and children's shows. It attracts a host of famous names including, Peter kay and Ken Dodd. You can book by phone (08451272190) or in person from Monday to Saturday 10am to 8pm but we booked on line, which was very easy to do and accessible 24 hours a day, although there is a small charge for doing this. In the theatre the seating is arranged on three...

colliedog2 18.06.2009 · Read review
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Review of Buxton Opera House, Derbyshire

A Night At The Opera!

Advantages: Lovely Buiding, Lots Of History
Disadvantages: Quite Expensive

...No visitor to the Derbyshire Town of Buxton on the edge of the Peak District National Park could have failed to see the Buxton Opera House. I visit Buxton perhaps one day every month and I am ashamed to say that I have almost come to take this beautiful building for granted. Until recently however this was never a place that I had been inside. Opera had never been high on my list of things to see but when a friend recently came over from America, visiting the Buxton Opera House was high on his agenda. It would seem that the reputation of this place really is Worldwide, or at least its status has spread as far as California. There is no denying that this building is grand by every definition of the word. It was designed by Frank Matcham who also designed London's Palladium and Coliseum. The Buxton Opera House, which opened in 1903...

micksheff 26.05.2007 · Read review
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Review of Buxton Opera House, Derbyshire

The Royal Oak's Home

Advantages: Historic house with friendly staff
Disadvantages: Very limited disabled access to house.

...During the Civil War, when King Charles II's enemies (Cromwell's Parliamentarians) won the battle of Worcester in 1651, he needed somewhere to hide. This is one of the homes where the inhabitants helped him. While in fear of searches being made of the house, Charles II hid in a now famous oak tree in the grounds, after which a lot of pubs where named The Royal Oak. The original oak no longer survives but its descendant does, and saplings with a Certificate of Authenticity can be brought for £9.99. (As our garden isn't big enough to have an oak tree grow in it without risking the roots causing damage to buildings, we weren't tempted by this offer.) When we first arrived at the house, we were firstly greeted by ducks in the free car park, which is next to their pond. No doubt they were hoping we had a picnic to share. We met...

luckyarchers 31.10.2008 · Read review
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Review of Boscobel House and The Royal Oak (Shropshire)

The Sydney Opera House - A Wonder of the World

Advantages: It is a wonder of the World
Disadvantages: Not Applicable

...The Sydney Opera House, is an absolutely fantastic spectacle of the southern hemisphere and really just outlines how great Australia is. The Sydney opera house with its distinctive sculptural shells, must be one of the architectural masterpieces of the modern era. Every year, around 4.5 million tourists come to see it which istwice the number that visit the White House. It is the result of an international design contest won by Danish architect Joern Utzon in 1956, the massive structure perched on Bennelong Point (where an Aborigine named Bennelong held concerts for early colonists and natives) took nearly 17 years and $102 million to complete. Utzon, inspired by sails, mandarins, palm leaves and such, wasn't too concerned with mundanities like budgets, and left mid-project before his grand interior vision was realised. Hence...

ekwiz 01.05.2001 · Read review
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Review of Sydney Opera House

Royal eggs, from Royal bums, in Royal houses.

Advantages: Great scenery, great house, great shop.
Disadvantages: Expensive souvenirs, crowded

...There aren't many that can fail to be impressed by their first view of Chatsworth House. Driving over that little one way bridge, over the cattle grid and into the beautiful grounds of Chatsworth affords some fantastic views of the surrounding countryside, with its magnificent forests high on the hills and the gentle babbling of the shallow river. Sheep graze the side of the road and occasionally, if you are lucky, you might catch sight of a magnificent deer standing proud on the horizon. These are scenes that wouldn't be out of place in any picture postcard but it is definitely the house that is the showstopper. Known as the palace of the Peak, this is one abode that would be too grand, even for the enigmatic Mr Darcy. This is of course the home of The Duke and Duchess of Devonshire and has been the family home for many hundreds...

MandyMinx 27.09.2003 · Read review
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Review of Chatsworth House

English National Opera - A National Treasure

Advantages: Accessible staging, good balance in programming, great education programmes
Disadvantages: Singing is not always consistently amazing

...As an aspiring opera singer (currently working in admin - oh, the glamour! - but hoping to go back to college in the near future), I try to attend as much live opera as I can. Living in London is great for this - we are spoilt with 2 international level opera houses, as well as numerous touring companies and high standard amateur productions. English National Opera is generally seen as the Royal Opera House's more accessible sibling - slightly cooler, slightly more modern. All productions are staged in English and the singing is generally of a very high standard. English National Opera's home is the Coliseum on St Martin's Lane, just off Trafalgar Square, so easily accessible from Charing Cross Station (Mainline or underground) or bus routes 3, 6, 9, 11, 12, 13, 15, 23, 24, 29, 53, 77a, 88, 91, 139, 159, 176, or if you're travelling by...

bubblegum_princess 02.03.2009 · Read review
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Review of English National Opera

The Royal Wee

Advantages: Easy toclean
Disadvantages: My son removes wee defender

...My son?s Royal Throne I bought my son a royal potty from Argos after visiting a friend when he was one year old and Although I considered him to be to young to consider potty training I did want him to have a potty around so that it was a familiar item. What is the Royal Potty? It is a potty that appears to be more comfortable than a normal potty as it is shaped liked a throne with arms and a back. It also has a splash protector at the front designed for little boys more than girls. It also has an additional function that is a fanfare sound when the child passes urine that is activated by the sensor. It is made with plastic that is easy to wipe. It also came with a sticker reward chart My experience First experience When I first bought the potty we were living in temporary accommodation so I...

Wisemind 22.10.2009 · Read review
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Review of Fisher Price Royal Potty