Page 86 - FINAL_Theatre of Sound Coverage Book

her new husband. But a reimagining of the piece by Theatre of Sound is touching
and moving, putting in place of sexual menace a sense of lost that can speak to all.

Bluebeard here is a kindly husband, stretched to the limit by the creeping dementia
of his wife. The 'doors' in their 'castle' are represented by a trunkful of memories in
their ordinary home. A seductive kimono, a wedding veil, baby things, a son's

longed-for baseball cap conjure up good times and bad gone by, remembered with
both affection and pain by the man, hardly at all by the woman.

Judith's younger self appears in four guises – the sexy young woman, the excited
bride first at the altar, then with her first baby, and finally the mother scarred by grief.

Bluebeard – it sounds like a nickname from their flirty early days – is scarred too, by
the loss of the woman he loved, abducted by dementia.

This profound and powerful hour of drama in music is raised above pure pain by
outstanding performances from soprano Susan Bullock and bass-baritone Gerald
Finley. Right in our midst, the audience on three sides at the Shaftesbury Avenue
venue Stone Nest, formerly a chapel, these two top-flight singers tell with passion a
story that could unfold in any family.

Six instrumentalists from the London Sinfonietta perform Bartok's elaborate score as
arranged by conductor Stephen Higgins. (For best balance, maybe choose a seat at

the corners or sides.) Director Daisy Evans's new translation of Béla Balázs' libretto
sheds new light on this fable, both a revelation and a great theatrical experience.

Further performances are on 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 Nov at 7PM, with additional
performances at 4PM on 7, 13 and 14 Nov. Roles are sung by Gweneth Ann Rand and
Michael Mayes at some performances. See Theatre of Sound booking site for casting
by Claudia Pritchard