Page 14 - FINAL_Theatre of Sound Coverage Book

Evans and Higgins have previously collaborated on productions for

companies including Welsh National Opera, English National Opera, Royal

Opera and Silent Opera.

They aim to present opera in "new and exciting ways", including immersive

productions, and to make the genre more accessible.

The company’s first production, Bluebeard’s Castle, will run at London’s

Stone Nest from November 4 to 14 and feature singers Susan Bullock,

Gerald Finley, Michael Mayes and Gweneth Ann Rand alongside the

London Sinfonietta.

Usually presented as a gothic horror story centred around an abusive

relationship, the production has been reimagined as a love story between a

long-married couple coming to terms with living with dementia.

The production will be sung in English in a newly-commissioned

translation by Evans, who also directs.

It marks the first time a fully staged opera production has taken place in
front of a live audience at Stone Nest.

Bluebeard’s Castle has musical direction and arrangement by Higgins, set

and costume design by Loren Elstein and lighting by Jack Wiltshire.

Higgins said: "This extraordinary masterpiece has been a favourite of mine

since childhood and to have the chance to work with such an amazing cast

and creative team to bring it to life in this evocative and extraordinary

setting is the fulfilment of a long-held dream.

"I am particularly excited to reframe the story as a love letter from a

devoted husband – a radical reinterpretation, which has made me listen to

the piece with completely new ears."