Season's Guests 2025-2026

Natalie Cassidy is best known for her role of Sonia in the soap Eastenders. Having played at Chichester festival theatre and a number 1 tour of Alan Ayckbourn’s ‘Bedroom Farce.’ Natalie is delighted to be back in the theatre hosting HSO’s Musical Stories concert for children of all ages.

Michal Oren is an award-winning conductor from Tel Aviv. She was the Female Conductor Trainee at Opera North (2024–2025) and has worked with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. She holds conducting diplomas from the Royal Academy of Music and the Royal College of Music. A former Residence Music Scholar of the Robert Anderson Trust, she has been supported by the America-Israel Cultural Foundation since 2015.

Laure Chan has performed at world-renowned venues including the Royal Albert Hall and Carnegie Hall, and has appeared at major festivals such as the BBC Proms and Lucerne Festival. A BBC Music Magazine Rising Star and Classic FM “30 Under 30” artist, she combines her classical training with diverse influences as both performer and composer, and has won international prizes in Paris, Berlin, and New York.

Liubov Ulybysheva studied at the Guildhall School and Royal Academy of Music, winning the Mir Carnegie Prize for Cello. An award-winning soloist, chamber musician, and teacher, she has performed internationally at major venues, joined the Royal Opera House orchestra in 2018, released her debut recording, and is Artistic Manager of the Brundibar Arts Festival.