Performer: Sarah Helsby Hughes

Opera Seria continues to amaze with a fiery production of Donizetti's Maria Stuarda.

Some panache is required to put a credible orgy on the stage of venerable old Skipton Town Hall. Heritage Opera, which has plenty, does just that with a minimal number of participants: the opening scene has an engagingly rumbustious quality, with plenty of screams, snogging and groping but not much of the courtly elegance which might signify that this is more than your run-of-the-mill bordello.

It's extremely rare to see a small opera company commission a brand new work, but that's exactly what Heritage Opera, who regularly present chamber operas in the north-west of England, have done.