Why Opera
Exceptional Artists
Singers passionate about their art.
Intimate Performance
Opera Concerts where you can experience the voices, musicianship and drama up close.
Great Stories
Powerful repertoire presented with imagination and theatricality.
A Living Art Form
Performances that feel immediate, relevant and thrilling.
A group of singers who want to share their joy in singing and spread the glory of Opera.
An Evening of Opera
Our Next Performance
NEW Date to be announced very soon
St. James' Church, Bushey WD23 1BD
We will be performing a concert programme of Opera ranging from Monteverdi to Mozart to Verdi with excerpts from Carmen, The Pearl Fishers, Norma, Rigoletto and more.
Come and join us for a wonderful evening raising funds for St. James Church, Bushey.
Our Performers
Julie Bale - Founder
Julie Bale is a dramatic soprano, vocal transformation specialist and performer with more than three decades of experience working with singers and professional artists.
Having been artistic director of Bushey Opera Group in the 1990s and general manager of OperaHerts in the 2010s, Julie took a break from event organising while she set up her programme for singers Diva Energy®.
Having spent over 35 years helping others find their voices, with St. James Opera Julie is now putting her own voice at the centre of her work. Choosing to sing with others as dedicated to her art as herself she is beginning a new chapter of singing for joy.
Read more about Julie Bale
Michael Pugh - Piano
We are delighted to welcome Michael as a part of Diva Energy Opera. Michael Pugh is an internationally acclaimed pianist, collaborative artist, repetiteur and coach. His extensive training began at the Royal Academy of Music and Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, followed by studies at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama with Graham Johnson and Paul Hamburger. Two Sir James Caird Scholarships and a British Council Piano Scholarship enabled further study at the Conservatoire Supérieur National de Paris and Tchaikovsky State Conservatoire in Moscow, including study with the legendary Lev Naumov and private coaching with Vladimir Ashkenazy.
At 28, Michael became the first British pianist to win the Aarau International Piano Competition in Switzerland. As a soloist, he has performed internationally from London to Osaka, collaborating with conductors including Sir Simon Rattle, Mariss Jansons, Edward Gardner and Alexander Briger. His extensive recording and performance repertoire encompasses major concertos by Rachmaninov, Mozart, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Ravel, Chopin, Liszt and Prokofiev.
As a collaborative pianist, Michael has performed at major venues and festivals including Wigmore Hall, St John’s Smith Square, Snape Maltings, Salzburg Festival and Cheltenham Festival, working with leading singers including Bryn Terfel, José Carreras, Yvonne Kenny and Dame Shirley Bassey.
Michael joined the Guildhall School staff in 2012 and was awarded a Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy in 2016.
Annie Bennett - Soprano
Before her current studies with Julie, Annie studied with the late Dorothy Shaw, in Kent. Her first operatic role was Carmen in 1993, In Tunbridge Wells, she then went on to sing Dorabella with Almaviva Opera. From 2007 she sang with Matchbox Opera in Kent, with roles including Carmen, Adina in The Elixir of Love, Donna Anna in Don Giovanni, Fiordiligi in Cosi Fan Tutte, Maddalena in Rigoletto, Musetta in La Boheme, The Countess in Marriage Of Figaro and the title role in Tosca.
Annie has also undertaken much concert and oratorio work in the South East, including works by Handel, Mozart and Verdi. She is also an experienced actress, having played many roles, including many by her favourite playwright, Shakespeare.
Scarlet Brett - Mezzo Soprano
Scarlet Brett is a British Mezzo-Soprano. Born in Bushey, Scarlet began their vocal training with Julie Bale before attending the Guildhall School of Music and Drama where they graduated with honours in 2018. After their graduation they continued their studies with Julie Bale.
Past vocal highlights include the Alto Soloist in Mendelssohn's Elijah for Harrow Philharmonic/Northwood Choral Society, Iolanthe in Gilbert and Sullivan's Iolanthe for Northwood Choral Society and The Sorceress in Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas for Harrow Opera.
Scarlet loves opera and performing more than anything else in the world and is extremely passionate about engaging and moving an audience. They are delighted to be involved in the Diva cohort because they share Julie’s belief that everyone has the ability to learn to sing and the right to be taught and cared for.
Andrew Bale - Tenor
Andrew has been active in the telecoms industry for many years. His current passion at work is finding solutions to the current flood of fraud in the phone network.
He has been a keen singer for most of his life, and has recently enjoyed developing his technical skills through Julie’s expert tutelage.
Robert Byford - Baritone
Robert studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and worked extensively as an actor in the West End, on tour and at the National Theatre including appearances in Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables, Miss Saigon, Racing Demon and An Inspector Calls. After further vocal studies Robert appeared as an opera singer for companies both in the U.K. and abroad in operas from the baroque to contemporary repertoires. After an extended break from singing he recently started performing again.
Recent performances include Geisterbote (Frau); Nachtwächter (Meistersinger) and Stárek/Rychtář (Jenufa) - all for Fulham Opera. Elsewhere Rigoletto; Scarpia. He studies with Neil Baker.
Want to Know More About Diva Energy Opera?
If you have any questions about Diva Energy Opera or would like to discuss the ensemble singing at your event please email Julie at julie@juliebale.com in the first instance.
