THERE'S nothing like a night at the opera to make you feel like you're living the high life.

It is the perfect opportunity to dust off your best frock ready to spend an evening listening to moving arias and pretending you're Glenn Close in Dangerous Liaisons.

If you've never been to the opera before, now is the perfect time to start.

One of Europe's leading opera companies, the Ukrainian National Opera of Odessa, will be coming to the Pavilion Theatre in Bournemouth as part of its first UK tour.

More than 100 soloists, chorus dancers, musicians, technicians and ballet dancers will be presenting lavish productions of The Barber of Seville and La Traviata.

The company may not have visited the UK before but they are famous overseas for their stunning and moving productions.

Odessa has a long tradition of opera - its first opera house was built in 1809 and was visited by Pushkin, while its later opera house saw such talents as Tchaikovsky, Caruso, Pavlova and Isadora Duncan.

The company will be coming to the Pavilion Theatre on June 19 with The Barber of Seville and June 26 with La Traviata. Box office: 01202 456 456.

COMPETITON:

Going to the opera is always a glamorous occasion, but the Daily Echo has got together with Ellen Kent International, which is producing the Ukrainian National Opera of Odessa's shows in Britain, to offer a stylish prize.

One winner will receive a pair of tickets to see La Traviata at the Pavilion Theatre, Bournemouth, on June 26, one night's accommodation at the English Rose Hotel, Bournemouth, a pre-opera supper in the hotel restaurant, a crate of champagne and a souvenir glossy programme.

The winner of the second prize will receive a pair of tickets to see La Traviata and a souvenir glossy programme and six runners-up will each receive a pair of tickets to see the opera.

To be in with a chance of winning, answer the following question:

Who wrote La Traviata?

Send your answer (NO E-MAILS!) with your name, address and phone number to: La Traviata Competition, Sally Churchward, Southern Daily Echo, Newspaper House, Test Lane, Redbridge, Southampton, SO16 9JX by June 21.