CHop chef

concept and story by paul smith & julie koh

Librettist Julie Koh
Composer Paul Smith
Directors Kenneth Moraleda & Nicole Pingon
Conductor Luke Spicer Set & Costume Designer Keerthi Subramanyam
Lighting Designer Kate Baldwin
Video Designer Susie Henderson
Production Manager Tyler Fitzpatrick
Stage Manager Hannah Crane
Deputy Stage Manager Chris Starnawski
Creative Consultant Courtney Stewart
Guest Conductor Harrison Collins

Chop Chef, the quirky brainchild of author Julie Koh and composer Paul Smith is a satirical operatic comedy in which six contestants from around Australia enter the cooking battlefield of a fictional reality television series Chop Chef. Faced with unusual and extreme cooking challenges, Kitty (Jermaine Chau), Tom, (Benjamin Caulkwell) Andy (Gavin Brown), Victoria (Ayako Ohtake), Kale (Nicholas Geddes) and Renée (Lisa Cooper) must compete to remain alive in the game and avoid facing the chop – literally.

Three omipresent judges (David Hidden) presiding over the shiny kitchen arena will decide the fate of each contestant — but not all is as it seems. Perhaps the tables will turn…

Composer Paul Smith mashes together the driving sonic world of MasterChef and Hunger Games on the operatic stage where reality television can be pushed to its absurd conclusions. In mind blending arias and melodramatic ensembles, each contestant is pushed to their limit and will stop at nothing to be the last chef standing. In the game of Chop Chef, there is only one rule – eat or be eaten. Are you ready to join our live audience?

Blush Opera is one of Sydney’s most fun-loving boutique opera companies, out to make opera going a serious pastime for future generations. The artistic partnership between directors Jermaine Chau and Paul Smith has been thriving on the festival circuit since the 2015. Their unique blend humour, theatricality and great storytelling makes the old fashioned tradition of opera new again.

NOTES FOR presenters

Duration 90min (and 20min interval)

Age M15+

Genre satirical opera

Instrumentation 6 voices + chamber ensemble

Chop Chef satirises racist and cultural attitudes and tropes, and therefore contains material that may be confronting to some audience members. This production includes strong language, adult themes, misogyny, sexual references, suicide and death.