Middle and Over Wallop restaurant will re-open in May in a renovated space created by Miller Bourne Architects with interior designed by Nigel Coates and a new menu endorsed by Prue Leith
In celebration of its 75th anniversary, Glyndebourne will be opening a newly renovated dining space on site. The old restaurant was badly in need of renovation and the new Middle and Over Wallop Restaurant will be a dramatic yet comfortable dining room which will be a stylistic match to the modern opera house. The renovations have only been possible with the munificent support of Glyndebourne caterers Compass.
‘Our main restaurant, Middle and Over Wallop, will re-open in May in a dramatically transformed and extended space created by Miller Bourne architects and the interior designed by Nigel Coates with new menus realised by Prue Leith. Our caterers of 26 years, Compass, provided a very generous donation towards this refurbishment, without which this project would not have taken place. The original dining hall was converted for the opening of the first Glyndebourne Festival in 1934 and it is very exciting that this restaurant has been renovated for our 75th anniversary.’ Gus Christie Executive Chairman, Glyndebourne.
The architecture
The restaurant has been extensively redesigned and refurbished using Brighton-based architects Miller Bourne. Miller Bourne have been employed by Glyndebourne for over 12 years and have been responsible for a number of projects on site including the new wardrobe department, gardener’s offices, scenery store, catering department offices, rehearsal stage and archive gallery. The building work has been undertaken by Shoreham-based contractors Bramber Construction Co Ltd. The new restaurant has been designed to be on three levels with a glazed extension with views of the South Downs.
‘Our new extension to the restaurant nestles quietly in the landscape against Middle and Over Wallop, taking its inspiration from the opera house behind. The design capitalizes on the wonderful vistas that exist through the trees to the gently rolling hills beyond. Large areas of glazing to both roof and walls create a light and airy space from which to enjoy these views.’
Neil McWalter and Amy Gordon, Miller Bourne.
The design
The interior of the new restaurant has been designed by Nigel Coates, architect, designer and professor at the Royal College of Art. By using serpentine banquettes, towering waiter stations and a series of interconnecting levels, his design defines many distinct areas. Coates has also imbued the project with a sense of theatre. Patrons will no doubt recognise some fittings from past Glyndebourne productions including a large-scale mural from La traviata. The decor also features many props chosen from opera house productions. All the furniture has been designed by Coates, and forms part of his Scubist collection for Italian company Fratelli Boffi.
‘I hope my design brings more character to the restaurant. Dining here should be part of the theatrical experience of coming to Glyndebourne, and make every visitor feel special. It’s not so much a conventional interior design as an exercise in art direction, and with plenty of artistry.’ Nigel Coates
Coates’ design incorporates a ‘cloud’ of the new chandeliers he has realised with Swarovski Crystal Palace. This stunning installation consisting of 43 so-named ‘Cloudeliers’ will hang in a central zone of the restaurant, visually connecting its three levels. These have been made in collaboration with the Italian lighting company Slamp, and are hung with crystals of Coates’ own design.
Nadja Swarovski, Vice President of International Communications, Swarovksi comments, ‘We are thrilled to be collaborating with Nigel Coates for Swarovski Crystal Palace this year. It seems fitting that Swarovski supports such a culturally rich Festival steeped in tradition. Nigel does a stunning job of integrating Swarovski crystal into his designs and the cloudelier is a perfect addition to this fantastic occasion.’
The menu
Leiths at Glyndebourne pride themselves on offering a dining experience which reflects Glyndebourne’s ethos of excellence. The new Middle and Over Restaurant will embrace a calm and stylish dining experience. It will seat up to 343 people, but will retain the intimacy which Glyndebourne prides itself upon. The restaurant will be open for a sumptuous afternoon tea prior to the performance and will have a bar stocked with brandies and liqueurs for after dinner. The menu, which has been endorsed by the acclaimed restaurateur Prue Leith, will focus on good seasonal British ingredients and the cellar will be filled with personally chosen wines and champagnes. In 2009 Glyndebourne will introduce the Glyndebourne Sauvignon, our own blended house white.
Prue Leith said: ‘The restaurant is very stylish and modern, and I am excited to develop a menu that reflects this. We use as much locally sourced produce as possible and we have an excellent chef who will serve a sophisticated dinner for customers within 55 minutes. I invite all Glyndebourne patrons to visit Middle and Over Restaurant for a dinner that matches the great quality of Glyndebourne’s opera.’
Matthew Thompson, Managing Director of the Sports, Leisure and Hospitality sector within Compass Group, said: ‘We are pleased to continue our long-standing relationship with Glyndebourne and contribute to the refurbishment of this iconic restaurant that has been part of the Glyndebourne experience for 75 years.’
Notes to Editors
Glyndebourne Festival Opera runs from 21 May – 30 August 2009
Operas include Verdi’s Falstaff, Purcell’s The Fairy Queen, Rusalka by Dvorák, Handel’s Giulio Cesare, L’elisir d’amore by Donizetti and Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde.
2009 GFO Box Office
Telephone and online booking opens on Saturday 18 April 2009
T: 01273 813813 or www.glyndebourne.com
About Glyndebourne:
The internationally renowned Glyndebourne Festival was founded in 1934 by John Christie and his wife, Audrey Mildmay; their grandson Gus is now Executive Chairman with David Pickard the General Director. Carl Ebert was the first Artistic Director and Fritz Busch Music Director. Vladimir Jurowski is the current Music Director. Now is its 75th year the Festival repertoire has expanded to include operas from the baroque to the contemporary, including seven of Glyndebourne’s own commissions and 13 British premieres. The opera house itself was rebuilt in 1994 and now seats 1,200.
Glyndebourne on Tour was founded in 1968 taking productions to a wider audience and offering increased performance opportunities to young singers. Additionally, Glyndebourne’s Education department has an enormous commitment to new opera and community projects; it currently hosts over 230 different activities each year. With 124 opera performances annually reaching over 140,000 people, Glyndebourne’s continued employment of inspirational directors and performers, and the ongoing drive to commission new work, now goes hand in hand with digital innovations to reach new audiences.
About Leith’s at Glyndebourne:
Leith’s (part of the Compass group) manage three restaurants on site at Glyndebourne; Mildmay Hall, Middle and Over Wallop and Nether Wallop, along with other catering facilities.
The Middle and Over Wallop Restaurant, which has been on the site since 1937, is so named after the mother of Glyndebourne founder John Christie, who’s family name was Wallop. The Hampshire villages of Middle, Over and Nether Wallop form part of her family’s estates.
About Miller Bourne:
Miller Bourne was formed in Brighton in 1958 and is one of the leading architectural practices in the South East. Miller Bourne is committed to excellence in practice and focus on delivering energetic, fresh design through sound project management and technical competence.
About Nigel Coates:
Coates is one of Britain’s consistently original thinkers in architecture, interior and product design having led a parallel career in teaching, design practice and artistically driven, internationally recognised work. Coates has designed and built interiors, exhibitions and buildings around the world. His buildings in Japan include the Wall, Noah’s Ark and the Art Silo, and in Britain, the National Centre for Popular Music, Powerhouseuk and the Geffrye Museum. He is also a prolific designer of lighting and furniture, with links to Alessi, AVMazzega, Ceramica Bardelli, Frag, Fratelli Boffi, Poltronova, Slamp and Varaschin. Examples of his work are held in museum collections around the world including the Victoria & Albert Museum, Cooper Hewitt and FRAC. He has been Professor of Architecture at the Royal College of Art since 1995.
About Swarovski:
In 1895, Daniel Swarovski I, a Bohemian inventor and visionary, moved to the village of Wattens, Tyrol in Austria, with his newly invented machine for cutting and polishing crystal jewellery stones. From these beginnings, which revolutionised the fashion world, Swarovski has grown to be the world’s leading producer of precision-cut crystal, for fashion, jewellery and more recently lighting, architecture and interiors. Today, the company, still based in Wattens, family owned and run by fourth and fifth generation family members, has a global reach. Illuminating fashion and culture, home and leisure www.swarovskicrystalpalace.com
Glyndebourne press contacts: Jo Townsend, Emma Menniss and Chandra Fifield
Tel: 01273 812321 Fax: 01273 815018 Email:
Glyndebourne, Lewes, East Sussex BN8 5UU