At the end of September, Opera Australia announced that as well as staging The Phantom of the Opera as its 2022 Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour, it was introducing a new outdoor spectacular called Opera on Cockatoo Island, with Liesel Badorrek directing a production of Carmen in November/December 2022.

Now, the company has announced that it will start 2022 with another spectacular event on Cockatoo Island – the inaugural New Year’s Eve Opera Gala on Cockatoo Island.

An impression of New Year’s Eve from Cockatoo Island

“We’ve all been starved of live entertainment so we’re inviting everyone to come and celebrate New Year’s Eve with us, to say farewell to 2021 and its lockdowns, and embrace the beginning of a fresh and invigorating new year,” said OA Artistic Director Lyndon Terracini.

The two-hour Opera Gala will feature a full orchestra conducted by Tahu Matheson and a cast of leading OA singers including Stacey Alleaume, Natalie Aroyan, Chanyang Choi, Diego Torre and Luke Gabbedy. The lavish occasion will be hosted by the wonderfully irreverent Jonathan Biggins.

Tickets don’t come cheap, starting at $399 plus an $8.50 transaction fee for the performance. For...