In at the deep end

The ice may be cold, but the grand finale to Opera Anywhere's Christmas season promises to be a real sizzler. In what must surely be one of the most unusual artistic collaborations ever, Opera Anywhere singers will be joined by a team of ice skaters from the Oxford Ice Rink in a feast of operatic favourites and other festive offerings.

Since its conception at Oxford Castle a year ago, Arias on Ice has arguably become Opera Anywhere's most successful venture - and it was certainly the one that media mogul Harvey Goldsmith latched on to when the company was put under the spotlight earlier this year for the Channel 4 documentary Get Your Act Together. The result was a high-profile performance at the open-air ice rink at Canary Wharf, which included input from skating legend Robin Cousins and a star appearance by tenor Alfie Boe (who was featured last week in Weekend).

"Harvey picked up on it as being a unique and really interesting idea," co-director? Mike Woodward said. "Since then we've been booked by an organisation called the Arena Group, which has ice rinks all over the country, and they want to test it out in Peterborough and the Isle of Wight, so we'll also be there over Christmas."

By the time Arias on Ice comes to Oxford, the company will have made an appearance at the open-air ice rink at Somerset House, and a return visit to Canary Wharf. But there is no doubt that being back on their home territory will be particularly special, and it gives local skaters the opportunity to get involved.

"It's something new for them," said Vanessa Woodward, "not only do they not normally get the chance to work with anything operatic, they often don't get the chance to work with live music, because normally it's recorded. So it's exciting for them. We went in the other day while they were working on O Mio Babbino Caro, and it looked fantastic." "They've been working on the choreography for quite a while and they've specially made all the costumes for it," added Mike. "There are one or two professional skaters, but for some numbers they are involving the whole club. They're rehearsing to recorded versions of everything, so when we get the singers and skaters together in the afternoon it'll be very interesting to see how it all ties up."

Mike and Vanessa have put together a 45-minute set, which will include such operatic lollipops as Largo al factotum from The Barber of Seville, O Sole Mio by Di Capua, the Barcarolle from The Tales of Hoffman and Au fond du temple Saint from Bizet's The Pearl Fishers, as well as a touch of Gilbert and Sullivan and some choral favourites.

"There's a few other things that are not necessarily Christmassy, but that have a feel-good factor," explained Vanessa. "So we've got Vivaldi's Gloria, which is quite upbeat and up tempo and it's a song of praise, so it fits in well at Christmas. We're going to end with In the Bleak Midwinter, which we'll all sing together, because it's a good Christmas carol that fits with being on the ice, and it's very atmospheric."

Joining Mike and Vanessa will be the outstanding Australian baritone Jeremy Vinogradov, alongside local young singers James Allen and Amy Webber.

"Jeremy actually auditioned for us on location," Vanessa said. "We were doing a gig in a shopping centre at Welwyn Garden City, and we thought we'd pick people on the day and see how they'd cope with singing in shopping centres, because with Opera Anywhere you get thrown in at the deep end doing weird and wacky things.

"We'd had some really good people that day, and then Jeremy just launched into Largo al factotum - he was out there in the shopping centre, going up and down the escalators and drawing this huge crowd. He was so good."

Twelve-year-old James Allen, currently appearing with Opera Anywhere in the title role of Amahl and the Night Visitors, will be singing Walking in the Air and Pie Jesu from Faure's Requiem, while promising young soprano Amy Webber, now in her final year at Cherwell School, will be singing Cherubino's aria, Non so piu cosa son from The Marriage of Figaro.

One thing Vanessa is adamant about is that she will not be donning her skates this time.

"We did for the television programme, because they were trying to make a thing about us being on skates. But this time we decided we'd do what we're good at, and let the skaters do what they're good at."

Meanwhile, Mike's main worry is keeping an eye on the piano.

"There's always the chance the piano will sink into the ice. At Canary Wharf, by the end of the evening the pedals were jammed up against the ice, but we're going to try and take precautions this time."

Arias on Ice is at the Oxford Ice Rink on Sunday, December 23 at 6pm. Box office: 01865 305305.