Season: 9 March, 2024

The Opera

An operatic version of the story of The Three Little Pigs based on scenes from operas by W. A. Mozart.

While brother pigs Don Giovanni and Cherubino set off to make homes of sticks and straw, their sister, Despina, goes to the library to read up on ‘huff-proof, puff-proof’ home construction. After Wolfgang Bigbad blows down the boys’ flimsy homes, they run to their sister’s sturdy new brick house quite ready to admit that going to the library and reading books is a pretty smart thing to do after all.

The Cast

Yumeka Hildreth as Despina Pig

Nicole Davey as Cherubino Pig

Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig

Thomas Woodfield as Wolfgang Bigbad

The Composer

Professional opera singer and director John Davies has performed with opera companies throughout the United States, including the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, and the opera companies of Boston, Philadelphia, Atlanta, St. Louis, Salt Lake City, Kansas City, Omaha, Cincinnati, Phoenix, Nashville, and Anchorage. He has also performed in concert as bass-baritone soloist with the symphony orchestras of Boston, San Francisco, St. Louis, Detroit, San Antonio, Indianapolis, Chattanooga and Syracuse.

A father of six children, and grandfather of many more, John takes an active interest in the performing arts for young people. His operas for young audiences have been presented by more than 150 opera companies and university opera programmes in North America - and now also, by one opera company in New Zealand.

Gallery

Some wonderful images of our sensational performance of ‘The Three Little Pigs’ at The Arts Centre Te Matatiki Toi Ora courtesy of our 2023-2024 season photographer Peter Moore.

Gallery Photographs © Peter Moore for Toi Toi Opera 2024

Yumeka Hildreth as Despina Pig, Nicole Davey as Cherubino Pig, & Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig

Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig & Nicole Davey as Cherubino Pig

Nicole Davey as Cherubino Pig & Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig

Nicole Davey as Cherubino Pig, Yumeka Hildreth as Despina Pig, & Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig

Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig, Yumeka Hildreth as Despina Pig, & Nicole Davey as Cherubino Pig

Thomas Woodfield as Wolfgang Bigbad & Matthew Oswin as Wolfgang Bigbad Statue

Thomas Woodfield as Wolfgang Bigbad pretending to be the statue!

Yumeka Hildreth as Despina Pig & Thomas Woodfield as Wolfgang Bigbad

Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig, Nicole Davey as Cherubino Pig, & Thomas Woodfield as Wolfgang Bigbad

Thomas Woodfield as Wolfgang Bigbad - it's picnic time! Or is it?

Thomas Woodfield as Wolfgang Bigbad & Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig

A very disappointing picnic for Wolfgang Bigbad!

Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig & Yumeka Hildreth as Despina Pig

Nicole Davey as Cherubino Pig, Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig, & Thomas Woodfield as Wolfgang Bigbad

Nicole Davey as Cherubino Pig, Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig, Thomas Woodfield as Wolfgang Bigbad, & Yumeka Hildreth as Despina Pig

Nicole Davey as Cherubino Pig, Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig, & Yumeka Hildreth as Despina Pig

Nicole Davey as Cherubino Pig, Yumeka Hildreth as Despina Pig, Lucca Ballara as Don Giovanni Pig, & Thomas Woodfield as Wolfgang Bigbad

John Davies (composer) on The Three Little Pigs:

“In 1991, while working as Director of Education for Syracuse Opera, I was asked by a large Parent Teacher Association if we had anything in our repertoire celebrating books and reading. The PTA had initiated a program called PARP (Parents As Reading Partners) and was looking for imaginative ways to celebrate reading and literature. We didn’t happen to have a ‘reading show’ in our repertoire at the time, but rather than jeopardize a chance for work, I somewhat recklessly guaranteed that we would ‘any moment now.’

I wrote The Three Little Pigs shortly thereafter. I thought it would be fun to have the two pigs who build their homes of sticks and straw do so out of a kind of slovenly lack of planning. In contrast, the little book-loving pig who builds her brick house goes to the library and reads up on wolf-resistant structures.

The Three Little Pigs has been produced with regularity in the USA since 1991. It gives me real satisfaction to think that many excellent American singers having wonderful operatic careers today used to be big bad wolves and little piglets.”

Season: 9 March, 2024

The Opera

The Cast

The Composer

Gallery

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