Alex Ho and Julia Cheng
Alex Ho is a British-Chinese composer based in London. Currently Artist-in-Residence with Opéra Orchestre National Montpellier, he has had pieces performed/commissioned by the London Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Society, Manchester Camerata, BBC Radio 3, Royal Opera House, National Opera Studio, Music Theatre Wales, and London Sinfonietta. Alex was winner of the Arthur Bliss Prize 2017, one of Sound and Music's 'New Voices 2018', an LSO Soundhub Composer 2018-2020, and shortlisted for a Scottish New Music Award 2021.
Alex is co-director of Tangram, a collective of composers and performers of Chinese and western instruments, and is completing a doctorate at the Royal College of Music with a full AHRC scholarship (LAHP studentship supported by RCM).
https://www.alexhocomposer.com/
Julia Cheng is a British born Chinese artist renowned for her extensive work in the dance theatre sector spanning over 15 years. As a creative director and choreographer, Julia draws from her international training in Hip Hop, Waacking/ Punking, contemporary dance, theatre studies, martial arts and eastern philosophy. Her technique continues to evolve as she seeks to break boundaries in her works, as seen in her most recent double-bill Brecht & Weill Seven Deadly Sins/Mahoganny Songspiel at Royal Opera House and her choreography work on West End musical revival of Cabaret which premiered in Dec 2021.
Throughout her career, Julia has developed cross-collaborative works & commissions with artists spanning contemporary dance, music, visual art and poetry to critical acclaim. This in turn led Julia to establish House of Absolute in 2014, a celebrated multidisciplinary performance company who are Philharmonic Orchestra Artist-in-Residence 2022.
https://www.houseofabsolute.com/
Britten Pears Arts are thrilled to be supporting composer Alex Ho and director/choreographer Julia Cheng once more on developing their (anti-)opera, 'Untold'. Alex and Julia began their creative collaboration for 'Untold' in 2019 at Snape Maltings and we are delighted to see how their production has continued to expand with exciting plans for 2023.
After an intensely wholesome first phase of development, composer Alex Ho and director/choreographer Julia Cheng are delighted to be expanding their (anti-)opera, Untold. The new production will be produced by Belgian-based Muziektheater Transparant with support from Britten-Pears Foundation for multiple performances around Europe in 2023 including All Arias Festival (Belgium) and O-Festival (Netherlands). Combining movement and music for Chinese and western instruments, Untold centres transnational experiences and casts a critical lens on received opera traditions whilst shedding light on the richness and multiplicity of cross-cultural spaces.
Described as "a rich tapestry" and "a collaborative tale of pride and grace" (Schmopera), the 2019 first version was performed by Julia Cheng, Keith Pun, and Tangram with support from Sound and Music, Arts Council England, Britten-Pears Foundation and Help Musicians UK and won the George Butterworth Award for "an outstanding new work".
