Ledlanet Nights
Encyclopedia
Ledlanet Nights in Kinrosshire, Scotland
, operated from 1962 for around ten years, and was one of the more remarkable artistic ventures in Scotland. This "inventive and not at all flippant little festival" offered performances mounted on a shoestring budget and which were held in the hallway at Ledlanet, then the home of the publisher John Calder
. Ledlanet, a baronial country mansion, was splendidly situated near Milnathort
and offered fine views over stretches of central Fife.
Ledlanet Nights, described at some length in Calder’s autobiography, developed as a general festival from modest beginnings. Many art forms were offered, among which were opera, theatre, recitals and orchestral concerts. An early, if unexpected addition, were folk evenings. As well as art exhibitions, the mix included one- or two- person shows of different types ranging from those of Geraint Evans
to
Ian Wallace or Donald Swann
. Initially these were mostly produced especially for Ledlanet, but as the seasons grew in ambition, later shows were often 'bought in' from a tour.
In the immediate post war period, professional opera could be found in Scotland mainly through the offerings of touring companies. Arts activity in country houses was not unknown but festivals generally were nowhere near as widespread as they have since become. In 1963 when opera was found largely at the Edinburgh International Festival
, and when Scottish Opera
had only just been founded, any additional opera on a small scale was to be welcomed. Handel works, then much less well known, featured prominently at Ledlanet with productions including
Agrippina
and Alcina
. Jill Gomez
and Josephine Barstow
were among several singers appearing who made an impression there at a relatively early stage in their careers; in Il Re Pastore
and Una Cosa Rara
respectively.
Ledlanet Nights remained small scale - even at its peak in 1973 there were seats for only 155 people – in the days before the modern concerns with health and safety, risk assessments, and the strict enforcement of fire regulations. Performers and audience members alike remember well the intimate atmosphere. With little support from public coffers, the Festival was heavily dependent on fundraising by regular patrons and supporters. By 1973 this was no longer sustainable. A personal account is provided by John Calder in his autobiography, Pursuit, where he attributes the sudden end of Ledlanet Nights to the financial consequences of divorce from his second wife.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, operated from 1962 for around ten years, and was one of the more remarkable artistic ventures in Scotland. This "inventive and not at all flippant little festival" offered performances mounted on a shoestring budget and which were held in the hallway at Ledlanet, then the home of the publisher John Calder
John Calder
John Mackenzie Calder is a Canadian and Scottish publisher who founded Calder Publishing in 1949.-Biography:John Calder was a friend of Samuel Beckett, becoming the main publisher of his prose-texts in Britain after the success of Waiting for Godot on the London stage in 1955-56...
. Ledlanet, a baronial country mansion, was splendidly situated near Milnathort
Milnathort
Milnathort is a small village in the Perth & Kinross region of central Scotland.The smaller neighbour of nearby Kinross, Milnathort has a small population of roughly 1000 people. It is situated amidst picturesque countryside at the foot of the Ochil Hills, and near the north shore of Loch Leven...
and offered fine views over stretches of central Fife.
Ledlanet Nights, described at some length in Calder’s autobiography, developed as a general festival from modest beginnings. Many art forms were offered, among which were opera, theatre, recitals and orchestral concerts. An early, if unexpected addition, were folk evenings. As well as art exhibitions, the mix included one- or two- person shows of different types ranging from those of Geraint Evans
Geraint Evans
Sir Geraint Llewellyn Evans was a Welsh baritone or bass-baritone noted for operatic roles including Figaro in Le nozze di Figaro, Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, and the title roles in Falstaff and Wozzeck...
to
Ian Wallace or Donald Swann
Donald Swann
Donald Ibrahím Swann was a British composer, musician and entertainer. He is best known to the general public for his partnership of writing and performing comic songs with Michael Flanders .-Life:...
. Initially these were mostly produced especially for Ledlanet, but as the seasons grew in ambition, later shows were often 'bought in' from a tour.
In the immediate post war period, professional opera could be found in Scotland mainly through the offerings of touring companies. Arts activity in country houses was not unknown but festivals generally were nowhere near as widespread as they have since become. In 1963 when opera was found largely at the Edinburgh International Festival
Edinburgh International Festival
The Edinburgh International Festival is a festival of performing arts that takes place in the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, over three weeks from around the middle of August. By invitation from the Festival Director, the International Festival brings top class performers of music , theatre, opera...
, and when Scottish Opera
Scottish Opera
Scottish Opera is the national opera company of Scotland, and one of the five national performing arts companies funded by the Scottish Government...
had only just been founded, any additional opera on a small scale was to be welcomed. Handel works, then much less well known, featured prominently at Ledlanet with productions including
Agrippina
Agrippina
Agrippina may refer to:In people:* Vipsania Agrippina , daughter of Caecilia Attica and first wife of the Emperor Tiberius* Vipsania Marcella Agrippina , daughter of Claudia Marcella Major and first wife of general Publius Quinctilius Varus* Julia the Younger or Vipsania Julia Agrippina , daughter...
and Alcina
Alcina
Alcina is an opera seria by George Frideric Handel. Handel used the libretto of L'isola di Alcina, an opera that was set in 1728 in Rome by Riccardo Broschi, which he acquired the year after, during his travels in Italy...
. Jill Gomez
Jill Gomez
Jill Gomez is a Trinidadian and British soprano of Hispanic origin.She was born in Guyana to a Trinidadian father and British mother; was raised in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago; and has made her career primarily in the United Kingdom. After studying briefly at St...
and Josephine Barstow
Josephine Barstow
Dame Josephine Clare Barstow DBE is an English soprano.-Education and early career:Josephine Barstow was born in Sheffield and educated at the University of Birmingham. She made her professional debut with the touring company Opera for All in 1964...
were among several singers appearing who made an impression there at a relatively early stage in their careers; in Il Re Pastore
Il re pastore
Il re pastore is an opera, K. 208, written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to an Italian libretto by Metastasio, edited by Gianbattista Varesco. It is an opera seria...
and Una Cosa Rara
Una cosa rara
Una cosa rara, ossia Bellezza ed onestà is an opera by the composer Vicente Martín y Soler. It takes the form of a dramma giocoso in two acts. The libretto, by Lorenzo da Ponte, is based on the play La luna de la sierra by Luis Vélez de Guevara. The opera was first performed at the Burgtheater,...
respectively.
Ledlanet Nights remained small scale - even at its peak in 1973 there were seats for only 155 people – in the days before the modern concerns with health and safety, risk assessments, and the strict enforcement of fire regulations. Performers and audience members alike remember well the intimate atmosphere. With little support from public coffers, the Festival was heavily dependent on fundraising by regular patrons and supporters. By 1973 this was no longer sustainable. A personal account is provided by John Calder in his autobiography, Pursuit, where he attributes the sudden end of Ledlanet Nights to the financial consequences of divorce from his second wife.