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Opera has never been more accessible – it’s the public that excludes themselves, says Michael Volpe.

Go-to writers on the matter of accessibility in opera often have a patter, a script; I am one of those people who have been writing pieces like this for two decades, but it would seem my message is still needed. I even wrote a book (Noisy at the wrong times) on the theme of my school and how it introduced me to the arts, and I continue to argue incessantly with people who claim opera is for the rich, unattainable, impenetrable, elitist and from a parallel universe. I swear and shout and stamp my feet – well I used to, but I stopped doing that because it doesn’t work.
Instead, at Opera Holland Park, we do what many opera companies in the UK do and spread the message of the all-embracing wonder of theatrical music to anyone who will listen. And what we find is that almost without exception, it works: people are hooked, moved, and have their eyes and ears opened to a new world. The most recent evidence of this is our film From Footy to Verdi, in which we took three Chelsea fans to the opera and saw remarkable results... Keep reading on BBC Music Magazine

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