The arts and health charity Health:Pitch is launching a twice-weekly online opera, written specially to support positive mental and physical health during the COVID-19 crisis and beyond.
Founded in 2017, Heath:Pitch delivers specially crafted productions combining opera and musical theatre in venues that rarely see such powerful performances. To date, these have reached more than 2000 people in over 50 diverse settings including care homes. dementia units and mental health services, hospices, housing groups and community centres.
With face-to-face performances now impossible, Health:Pitch co-founders, former health professional Camilla Vickers and professional opera singer Francesca Lanza, wanted to find a way to continue to reach into front rooms and care homes in particular. They wanted to bring some of the power of Health:Pitch musical theatre and humour direct to the audience online. Their answer is The Soprano, which is recorded by Lanza and other singers in their own homes – she is currently in Italy while others are in the UK – with a script focusing on issues of isolation and lack of connection with friends and family using humour and song to address some of the challenges.
Designed and delivered in collaboration with Celebrating Age Wiltshire and Wiltshire Music Centre, The Soprano is the first digital production from Health:Pitch. Written by the award-winning Dr Helen Eastman, it focuses on how music can keep us happy, healthy and connected with others and has been written especially to reach and support those groups who have been and remain isolated as a result of COVID-19.
There will be 8 10-minute episodes, released on YouTube every Wednesday and Saturday afternoon at 3pm from June 17th to July 11th. The entire series will remain available to use in activities for residents and broader public access on the Health:Pitch YouTube channel. The Channel also includes material from previous performances and it is all free to use.
You can also access information on Health:Pitch on Facebook or e-mail hello@healthpitch.org
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