11 June, 2026 - 11 June, 2026

La Giuditta by Alessandro Scarlatti

Talented young artist countertenor Ralph Thomas Williams approached us with a beautiful idea: to recreate an oratorio by Alessandro Scarlatti, La Giuditta, as a Barefoot Opera style physical theatre, movement based opera. 

Alongside Ralph, our fully staged version of the dramatic 1690 oratorio features two superb singers: Toshi Ogita and Ella Joy, with our great MD Laurence Panter at the keyboard. Laurence will be joined by bass clarinetist, Kathryn Titcomb.

The artist Jane Bruce, a long-standing collaborator with Barefoot Opera, will be creating magical visuals.

Thrillingly, in addition to a performance here in St Leonards, we will also be staging the opera at the  beautifully converted Theatre Basse-Passieres in Normandy.

8pm, Thursday June 11^th, at St Johns Church Hall, Brittany Road, St Leonards TN38 0RD

Tickets £25 – includes a glass of fizz

7pm, Saturday June 13^th, La Basse Passière, 61340 Perche en Nocé, France

Tickets €30

Artist Biogs

Ralph Thomas Williams 

Ralph is a British countertenor active in opera, concert and choral singing around the United Kingdom, having finished his Masters degree with first class honours at The Royal Northern College of Music. Recent roles include Cupid in Blow’s Venus and Adonis with HGO, premiering The Host in Amir Mayar Tafreshipour’s The Red Room for Tête à Tête festival, premiering Isaac/Caspar in Luke Styles/Britten’s Awakening Shadow for both The Cheltenham and Presteigne Festivals. Ralph has also performed as soloist in Cantatas by Bach with The Liverpool Bach Collective.

Ella Joy 

A soprano, Ella trained at the Royal Northern College of Music, where she was a Levenshulme Arts Scholar, resident artist with Opera North and recipient of awards from the Mbili and Kathleen Trusts. She has performed with Tête à Tête Opera, DEBUT Opera, UC Opera, KC Opera and the Conservatoire du 12ème in Paris, appearing at venues across London and Europe. A regular soloist with the Southend Bach Choir and Orchestra, she has also performed as an ensemble musician with the award-winning Lunar Consort and the Rodolfus Choir. 

Toshi Ogita

Originally from Japan, tenor Toshi Ogita has just graduated from the Royal Academy of Music. Previously, Toshi read MA History of Art & History of Music at the University of Edinburgh. During this time, he studied privately with Scott Johnson and was a choral scholar at Paisley Abbey. Subsequently, he sang for three years at Truro Cathedral. Toshi has performed the role of Malcolm in Verdi’s Macbeth for Duchy Opera and Tamino in a semi-staged performance of excerpts from Die Zauberflöte at Truro Cathedral. A keen recitalist, Toshi is particularly passionate about lieder. With pianist Tim Dean, Toshi has performed Schubert’s Schwanengesang and a selection from Schumann’s Myrthen.

Kathryn Titcomb 

Kathryn Titcomb is a clarinettist and bass clarinettist based in London having recently graduated from Guildhall School of Music and Drama (GSMD) with a Distinction in her Masters in Performance. There, she studied with Andrew Webster, Joy Farrall, Andrew Marriner and Robert Ault whilst supported by the David and Margaret Phillips Award. She has returned to GSMD this year as a Junior Fellow. Kathryn also holds a First-Class degree in Mathematics and Music from the University of Birmingham in 2021, where she studied clarinet with Jack McNeill.

Laurence Panter

A graduate of Cambridge and (post graduate) Trinity College London, Laurence has pursued a multi-faceted career as tenor, conductor, composer and arranger. Since 2022, Laurence has been MD, pianist and arranger for Barefoot Opera, leading successful tours of Rossini’s La Cenerentola (2022 and 2023) and Verdi’s La Traviata (2024). Previously, Laurence musically directed and/or accompanied a number of operatic productions from the piano, including Humperdick’s Hansel & Gretel (Opera in the Meantime – MD), Bernstein’s Trouble in Tahiti (Stage Left Project) and Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice (Grassroots Opera – MD).

Jane Bruce

Jane completed a BA in Textiles at Camberwell College of Art and a post-graduate course in theatre design at Croydon College of Art and has since worked across a wide range of media, television, documentary and feature films, arts projects and opera as a designer. Jane paints portraiture and has exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery as part of National Portrait Prize. Since 2001 she has worked with Radiator Arts, both as artist and project manager, creating large-scale theatrical performances that often take place in unusual sites. Jane has worked with Jenny Miller on a number of productions over a decade, including three of the Mozart/Da Ponte operas for Longborough Festival Opera, and Carmen for Barefoot Opera.