The Flying Dutchman reinvented: OperaUpClose tours radical new version of Wagner's opera

OperaUpClose, artistic director Flora McIntosh, is touring a radical new look at Wagner's The Flying Dutchman. From 28 June to 23 July, the company will be performing The Flying Dutchman at Turner Sims, Southampton, SS Great Britain, Bristol, Worthing Pavilion, Worthing, Grand Junction, London, Trinity Market, Hull and Invisible Wind Factory, Liverpool.

Directed by Lucy Bradley with music director Timothy Burke, the production features a new libretto by Glyn Maxwell and an orchestration for eight-piece chamber orchestra by composer Laura Bowler (in association with associate music director Robin Wallington) performed by the Manchester Camerata.

The production steers clear of traditional 'end-on' performance to immerse the audience in a haunting political tale exploring the displacement of people and the psychology and realities of living on an island with hardening borders. The cast includes Philippa Boyle, Timothy Dawkins, Carolyn Holt and Pauls Putnins, as well as pre-recorded voices from a national network of community choirs.

The Flying Dutchman is touring with We two were lovers – The Sea and I. A musical and poetic journey that addresses themes around the movement of people, island mentality and humanity’s complex love affair with the sea. Work is centred around Toria Banks’s new, contemporary version of Arianna a Naxos, Haydn’s dramatic cantata.

Full details from the OperaUpClose website.