Saturday arrived and with it the fine weather. The garden, after the rain, looked sparkling and the colours intense. It was a busy day for the family-Grandparents, parents, grandchildren and friends all lent a hand to prepare the garden and orchard. Meals were all served al fresco under the shade of the cherry plum tree. Sunday dawned with a blue sky and hot sun. The musicians, singers and production team started arriving early in the day. Instruments were set up and the rehearsal got under way, with Steve Rumsey as conductor looking very much the part, sporting a huge, white, floppy hat as protection against the sun. Musicians took advantage of quiet corners of the orchard, to practise their pieces. The sounds of music were everywhere. The day was magical: children running and climbing trees, a bassoon player practising among the apple trees, arias being sung, people relaxing under the weeping ash and cherry plum trees, taking refuge from the scorching sun. A picnic lunch was served on the lawn for helpers and cast.

Carmen 2003

At 5pm the first cars arrived and they kept on coming right until curtain up. The gardens were a mass of activity with the babble of voices and laughter, the sound of popping champagne corks, clinking glasses and delicious aromas coming from the splendid varieties of picnics being laid out on linen covered tables, picnic rugs or knees - friends meeting friends, old acquaintances being rekindled, the wonderful feeling of a special evening with the informality of being among friends, and through it all the air of expectant excitement as we waited for the opera to begin.

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