Exhibition showcases magical musical journey of acclaimed opera company

Opera Eagle’s Nest cast members Howard Edmunds, Tania Edmunds and Tom Moran in costume for the company’s Madame Butterfly performance.

The magical musical journey of the Scenic Rim's acclaimed opera company will be showcased in an exhibition opening at The Centre Beaudesert next week.

Opera Reimagined: 25 Years of Opera Eagle's Nest features stunning costumes, sets, concert posters and videos celebrating the stellar success of a fledgling company which began with afternoon tea recitals and has soared to unimagined heights, performing more than 500 concerts in venues ranging from cultural centres to international hotels, vineyards and even pontoons on lakes under the stars.

Scenic Rim Arts Reference Group Chair Councillor Michael Enright said Council has been pleased to play a role in the ongoing success of Opera Eagle's Nest and the celebration of its achievements.

“This is a musical company that has not only brought joy to thousands, enriching the cultural life of our community, but also helped to enhance our region’s reputation as a centre of creativity,” he said.

The exhibition traces the company's 25-year journey from Sunday afternoon concerts staged by Howard and Tania Edmunds at their Eagles Nest restaurant on Tamborine Mountain to a touring company employing more than 100 singers and musicians, whether emerging artists or those who had already achieved national or international acclaim.

From the first concert in 1998, with Tania singing a number of popular classical songs and arias while Howard prepared afternoon teas, Opera Eagle's Nest spread its wings and took off, staging Saturday evening concerts with three-course themed dinners that attracted audiences from near and far.

Concert goers travelled from Brisbane, the Gold Coast and Northern New South Wales and the success of the Opera Eagle's Nest dinner concerts saw the company engaged by both the Concord Hotel in Surfers Paradise and the Sanctuary Cove Country Club to take their musical magic to a wider audience.

"Our big time started when we were being invited to perform at larger events such as the World Conference of International Toast Masters in Brisbane and to perform on the lake behind the Gold Coast Arts Centre for 2000 Japanese pharmaceutical employees who had been flown out by their company for a holiday on the Gold Coast," Howard said.

"That night Opera Eagle’s Nest performed on pontoons on the lake with our musical performance set to fireworks."

The company began touring to Bangalow in the hills behind Byron Bay, with one sell-out concert which drew 400 mostly young people creating some concern for Howard backstage five minutes before showtime.

"Had I set us up for a fall? Our demographics were for the 45 plus age group," Howard said.

"I needn’t have worried. The 20 somethings, far from disappointed, gave a standing ovation that left all the performers on a high that night."

Despite the success of Opera Eagle's Nest, the impact of the Global Financial Crisis on self-funded retirees, who were some of its most devoted followers, flowed on to the company which struggled to keep the show on the road.

On the advice of Scenic Rim Regional Council's Cultural Services team, Howard explored the possibility of touring Opera Eagle's Nest in South Western Queensland.

A fact-finding trip to Dalby, Childers, Blackall, Cunnamulla, St George and Roma in 2018 was followed by a highly successful concert tour commencing in 2019.

"Thanks to the support of Scenic Rim Regional Council's Regional Arts Development Fund and Arts Queensland funding, Opera Eagle's Nest has been touring for the past four years and will continue," Howard said.

Opera Reimagined: 25 Years of Opera Eagle's Nest opens on Saturday 18 March and runs until Saturday 10 June.