HEARING IS BELIEVING
BARDO is a vocal arts house
We build worlds out of voices.
Here, mercurial sound meets bold theatrical imagination, to create stories that hold you suspended. Worlds where the edge between reality and reverie, known and unknown, players and audience - dissolves.
See you on the other side.
DEBUT PRODUCTION
The Matchgirl Passion
A gilded prince watches his city from above and begins to weep. A girl strikes her last match against the dark. Two stories of sacrifice told through voices, puppetry and light. Our debut production pairs Oscar Wilde's The Happy Prince with David Lang's Pulitzer-winning Little Matchgirl Passion – united by a profound compassion for those whom society chooses not to see.
March 2027, tickets on sale January 2027
WHO’S BEHIND IT
Jamie Powe
Founder & Artistic Lead
BARDO is imagined and produced by Jamie Powe. Classically trained at Oxford University with an MA from the Royal Academy of Music, Jamie is now pushing at the boundaries of choral music, drawn to work that is complex, curious, and contemporary. A composer and conductor of four UK choirs including The Fourth Choir — London’s leading LGBTQ+ vocal ensemble. BARDO is his first venture built from scratch.
Singers
16 voices
Our singers are drawn from leading chamber choirs and opera companies across Europe. We cast for the voices the production needs — for those able to bring the story to life beyond the score — and release details ahead of each performance.
Collaborators
We devise two, limited-run productions a year, in partnership with visual creators, theatre-makers, and physical spaces. Our debut is currently being developed alongside:
ALEX SUTTON
A Director, dramaturg and artist with roots in Ireland and Cornwall, Alex trained at the National Film and Television School (NFTS), Bristol University, and the VGIK Institute of cinematography in Moscow. Moving between stage and screen, he has spent over two decades in theatre - including the National, the Royal Opera House, and in the West End - alongside his work on large-scale film and television sets.
JONNY DANCIGER
A stage director & creative technologist, Jonny's work intertwines video mapping, immersive audio and multi-sensory design. Previously an actor in West End productions of Billy Elliot and Twisted Tales, he then became Artistic Director at the OSO Theatre, leading in the pandemic to record audiences. Today, he's Director of Jam Jar Theatrical Productions alongside poet Roger McGough, with work shown across Europe.
Charlie Tymms
A puppet designer and maker based in East London, working across theatre, film and the visual arts. Charlie engineers figures — from mouse-sized to three metres tall — that blur the line between object and performer. Her credits include Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Life of Pi, Spirited Away, Lord of the Rings and Wes Anderson's Isle of Dogs, with work seen on stages from the West End and Broadway, to Vienna and Tokyo.
Why we exist
We are a charity, founded to create work that otherwise wouldn’t get made — for those who have never set foot in a concert hall, as much as those who feel at home in one.
We believe that when freed from traditional constraints, choral music can tell stories and hold rooms the way the best films, musicals, or plays can. By breaking form, we reach audiences that reflect the diversity of our home city, London, and those throughout Europe.
OUR TRUSTEES
Adam is a linguist at the University of Oxford and on the Governing Body at Kellogg College. His academic research examines the intersection of speech, language and cognition, using cross-disciplinary methods. A baritone, he has sung with ensembles in London, Los Angeles, and Melbourne, where he was a choral scholar at Ormond College. As a trustee, he is excited to support BARDO’s story-telling in new and unexpected ways.
Kate is Head of Events at St John’s Waterloo, a leading cultural and events venue on London’s South Bank, where she oversees a diverse programme of arts, commercial and community events. A trustee of The Fourth Choir, Kate brings expertise in organisational learning and development, fundraising, and cultural partnerships, and is committed to helping BARDO establish itself as an innovative and sustainable vocal arts house.
Anne is Chief Executive and Co-Founder of Amadeus Capital Partners, a venture capital firm investing in early-stage and growth technology companies. A former Chair of the BVCA and Invest Europe, Anne has served on the Court of the Bank of England and Yale's Investment Committee, and was awarded a Damehood in 2025 for her services to engineering and science business. She brings decades of experience scaling ambitious ideas — like BARDO — from the ground up.
Bill is a former trader at IMC Trading in Amsterdam, currently working in the public sector. He has a background in physics and economics, and has conducted research at the intersection of climate science and public policy. His experience bridges analytical rigour with real-world impact — an instinct he brings to our ambition to build something lasting.
BUILD WITH US
Every production begins long before the first night — in the imagining, making, and curating the right space.
FOR SUPPORTERS
Your support makes it possible to stage new work in new ways, create transportive worlds, and open our doors to people who wouldn’t otherwise walk through them.
We are currently raising £70,000 to bring our debut production to life, from getting set up behind the scenes, to bringing our artistic vision to life on stage. All donations — at any level — form an indelible part of our founding story.
Learn more about our supporters programme here.
LAUNCHPAD
A one-off contribution to help get BARDO off the ground. This is where it all begins.
FRIENDS
Regular giving gives BARDO the stability to plan, experiment and grow – supporting the artists, rehearsals and creative development that make our work possible. Be part of BARDO from the start, with updates from inside our creative journey and priority access to performances and events.
£10 / £25 / £50 per month
FOUNDERS
Major founding support gives BARDO the freedom to be ambitious – bringing exceptional artists together and turning our boldest ideas into performance. Get closer to the people, ideas and creative processes behind the work, through rehearsal access, artist encounters and invitations to key moments.
