30 May - 8 August 2026
This year return for a season of world-class opera and a friendly welcome in the Cotswolds.
Longborough Festival Opera has a reputation for performances of Richard Wagner. In 2026, we present a revival of our acclaimed production of Wagner’s groundbreaking Tristan und Isolde, directed by Carmen Jakobi with the Longborough Festival Orchestra conducted by Longborough’s veteran Wagnerian Music Director, Anthony Negus.
Across the rest of the programme, enjoy chivalric misadventure and the madness of unrequited love in Orlando. Follow intertwining, intense relationships across the themes of love, war, and insanity in this new production directed by Sinéad O’Neill and conducted from the harpsichord by experienced Baroque specialist Christopher Moulds. Audiences will also be treated to a period-instrument orchestra with the renowned Academy of Ancient Music.
2026 will see our first production of Verdi’s adaptation of the Scottish play, which the composer himself called "one of the greatest creations of man".
Our production of Macbeth is directed by award-winning director Karolina Sofulak and conducted by rising star Nil Venditti, who made her BBC Proms debut in 2024 and is currently Principal Guest Conductor of the Royal Northern Sinfonia. Macbeth will also feature the Longborough Community Chorus working alongside the Festival Chorus and Orchestra.
To bring the season to a close, audiences will be treated to Humperdinck's enduring reworking of the Grimms' powerful fairy tale. Conducted by Karen Kamensek and directed by Lucy Bailey, the production will feature international artists, combined with the acclaimed Longborough Youth Chorus and sung in English with Sir David Pountney's intelligent and witty translation.
Tickets open for public sale on Monday 2 March 2026. Join as a member today and receive exclusive pre-booking access.
The festival takes place in a purpose-built 500 seat theatre in the picturesque Cotswold village of Longborough, near Stow-on-the-Wold and Moreton-in-Marsh.
The nearest railway station is Moreton-in-Marsh, which has direct trains from major stations including London Paddington, Hereford and Worcester. We operate a bus shuttle service from the station to our theatre (you will need to prebook this). There is plenty of car parking on site.
Our part of the Cotswolds has many types of accommodation available, from small B&Bs and cosy pubs with rooms, to larger premium hotels.
There is no dress code. Dress as smartly or as comfortably as you like.
Our intimate 500-seat theatre was once a chicken shed, and is now a working theatre featuring an orchestra pit for 70 players and seats salvaged from the Royal Opera House. It opens only for our festival, and in 2025 will host 22 performances across the summer.
Each production includes a 90-minute interval for dinner. Bring your own picnic and find a spot in the grounds to enjoy the spectacular views, or book a place in our own on-site restaurant offering a three-course meal. We have bars on site, and there is a lovely local pub in the village, a few minutes’ walk from the festival site.
The Cotswolds is the perfect place to visit, with many beautiful places to see and things to do. There are historic houses, picturesque countryside, castles, churches, a heritage steam railway, and beautiful villages such as Bourton-on-the-Water.
