Thursday 5 March 2015

Unsuk Chin's Alice in Wonderland

© Ralph Steadman
© Ralph Steadman
This year is the 150th anniversary of the publication of Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland books and to celebrate this the Barbican Centre is remedy in a serious gap in the British opera scene and presenting the UK premiere of Unsuk Chin's opera Alice in Wonderland. Unsuk Chin's opera was premiered by Bavarian State Opera at the Munich Opera Festival in 2007 and the work has gone on to be staged in Geneva, Bielefeld and Saint Louis so it is great to be able to welcome the piece finally to the UK.

The work is being staged by Netia Jones, in a version which combines live projections and animated characters based on the work of Ralph Steadman. The staging is a collaborative venture with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and it was premiered in Los Angeles in February before coming to London to be performed by the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Jones's previous stagings at the Barbican Hall have included Oliver Knussen’s double-bill Where the Wild Things Are and Higglety Pigglety Pop! (2012) and Britten’s Curlew River (2013).

Baldur Bronnimann conducts the BBC Symphony Orchestra with Rachele Gilmore in the title role, Jane Henschel as the Queen of Hearts, Dietrich Henschel as the Mad Hatter and Andrew Watts singing the White Rabbit, Badger and March Hare, plus the BBC Singers and the Tiffin Boys Choir..

Further information from the Barbican Centre website.

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