Stephen Fry to curate Deloitte Ignite festival at Royal Opera House

23 May 2013, 13:41 | Updated: 18 September 2014, 14:49

The Royal Opera House has announced the curator of this year's Deloitte Ignite festival of opera will be Stephen Fry.

The festival is titled Verdi/Wagner (200), and will include programmes of works celebrating the bicentenary of both composers. The other main celebration to marked will be the 100th anniversary of the birth of Benjamin Britten.

Fry, a renowned opera lover, commented: "Very proud and pleased to be associated with Deloitte Ignite’s contribution to this celebration and the opening up of opera to as wide an audience as possible."

Innovative attractions at the festival, due to run from September 6th - 29th, include an interactive sculpture of a revolving zoetrope to be installed in the Covent Garden piazza, and a one-man show from actor Simon Callow, in which he will portray the role of Richard Wagner.

Hand-mime artist Andrew Dawson will also perform a shortened version of Wagner's Ring Cycle, while comedy danced duo New Art Club will interpret a variety of Verdi operas.

A sound installation using recordings of different people singing Verdi's 'Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves', created by the Opera House's composer-in-residence Elspeth Brooks, will also feature.

The news comes after Fry was announced as a performer in Welsh National Opera's forthcoming production of Benjamin Britten's Paul Bunyan.

More line-up details are due to be announced in the coming months.