The perfect serve: Marin Alsop conducts Laura Karpman's opera 'Balls'
THE PERFECT SERVE: THE PHILHARMONIA ORCHESTRA PRESENTS THE BATTLE OF THE SEXES – MARIN ALSOP CONDUCTS BALLS
Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre
Thursday 20 November 2025, 7.30pm
The Philharmonia Orchestra will bring the extraordinary story of one of sport’s most groundbreaking moments to the concert hall on 20 November. Under the baton of the Philharmonia’s Principal Guest Conductor, Marin Alsop, Balls is a witty, powerful and genre-defying opera by the five-time Grammy winning and Academy Award-nominated American composer Laura Karpman.
Balls tells the story of the famous 1973 “Battle of the Sexes” tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs. Watched by over 90 million TV viewers worldwide, the match became a cultural flashpoint in the fight for gender equality. King’s triumph over Riggs was not only a sporting victory but a decisive moment in the women’s liberation movement.
Karpman’s opera, praised for its blend of humour, theatricality and biting social commentary, captures the tension, absurdity and significance of that night in Houston, Texas. Incorporating pastiche and electronic textures wrapped in a dazzling score, Balls reimagines the spectacle of the match as both entertainment and allegory, asking pertinent and timely questions about sport, celebrity, gender and power.
Performed as part of the Philharmonia’s 80th anniversary season, Balls marks the UK premiere of Karpman’s opera and the world premiere of a performance with a full orchestra. Marin Alsop, a long-time champion of Karpman’s music, leads the orchestra in this special performance that will be as provocative as it is exhilarating. The first half of the concert will be Walton’s Façade and it is preceded by the Philharmonia debates… discussion on music and gender (20 November).
The lead roles in Balls - Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs - will be sung by Mezzo Soprano Nikola Printz and Tenor Nicky Spence. British actor Emma Kennedy will play the role of American sports journalist and commentator Howard Cosell.
Oscar nominated, five-time Emmy award winning composer Laura Karpman works across film, television, theatre, interactive media and live performance. Her films include American Fiction, which has garnered five Oscar nominations including Best Original Score, Captain America: Brave New World, and Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed for which Karpman was Emmy nominated for her work, and for television Down Cemetery Road, What If?, Ms. Marvel and 61st Street.
American maestra Marin Alsop is one of the foremost conductors of our time and the first woman to serve as the head of a major orchestra in the United States, South America, Austria and Great Britain. In the weeks prior to Balls, Alsop will conduct the Philharmonia Orchestra at Carnegie Hall as part of a 10-date US tour.
There is a unique participation element in this performance - the Philharmonia Orchestra are inviting volunteers to be part of the ‘tennis crowd’, based in the choir stalls. The sign up process is here.
Printz, Spence and mezzo soprano Lotte Betts Dean will narrate William Walten’s Façade, which opens the concert.
ENDS
Listings information:
The Battle of the Sexes: Marin Alsop conducts Balls
Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre
Thursday 20 November 2025, 7.30pm
More info and tickets here
Programme
Walton’s Façade followed by Laura Karpman’s Balls (World premiere of version with full orchestra)
Running time: 1hr 50mins, including an interval
Recommended age: From 7+
Artists
Façade
Marin Alsop – conductor
Nikola Printz – narrator
Nicky Spence – narrator
Lotte Betts Dean – narrator
The Battle of the Sexes: Marin Alsop conducts Balls
Marin Alsop – conductor
Nikola Printz – Billie Jean King
Nicky Spence – Bobby Riggs
Emma Kennedy – Howard Cosell
Lotte Betts Dean – Marilyn Barnett
Eve Pearson Maxwell – Susan B. Anthony / ensemble
Oliver Barker – Larry King / ensemble
Mia Serracino-Inglott – Rosie Casals / ensemble
Ariana Ricci – ensemble
Lucile Guedj – ensemble
Tim Burton – ensemble
Archie Inns – ensemble
Gyaan Bhuyan – ensemble
With singers from London Voices
Emma Doherty – director
Ben Parry – assistant conductor
Ruth Paton – designer
Notes to Editors:
The concert is part of the Philharmonia Orchestra Classical Season - Autumn/Winter 2025/26
The Philharmonia Orchestra is proud to be supported using public funding by Arts Council England.
As a registered charity, the Orchestra relies on the support of our family of Friends, donors and corporate partners to deliver its programme.