Hot on the tail of glowing reviews, a sell-out opening night in St Leonards in July, and five shows to packed audiences in London, Barefoot Opera brings its tour of Rossini’s La Cenerentola (Cinderella) to Rye Creative Centre on Saturday, August 19.
“A feast of vocal virtuosity and verve” (The Stage)
Audiences and reviewers alike have been “astonished, affected and humbled” by the show, and its impressive cast of young professional singers and musicians, drawn from an international pool of leading and up-and-coming performers. “To be able to see and hear such singing up close is an absolute joy” (Audience feedback).
Bringing together the work of Ballet-Rambert trained choreographer Michael Spenceley and renowned director Jenny Miller, the show has a joyful, physical edge, and has impressed opera lovers, as well as those who have never been to an opera before. “I didn’t know what to expect, and I couldn’t believe how moved I was, as well as how funny it was” (Audience feedback).
Audiences have also been surprised by the contemporary relevance of this production, with its vibrant set and eye-watering costumes. Here we find no fairy godmother or glass slipper, but a family trashing the earth’s resources, and ugly sisters obsessed with social media. Bringing the much-loved, romantic tale of Cinderella bang up to date, Jenny Miller calls it an ‘eco-production’ that transforms pre-loved pieces of set and wardrobe.
“Imagine a classic farcical comedy: dressing up, disguise, mistaken identities, characters spying on each other, asides to the audience, love, loss, final resolution. Now imagine it updated to the twenty-first century with its super-waste culture, its reliance on joined-up technology and its posturing and virtue-signalling by dishonest politicians, wealthy sycophants, and WAGs. Put the two together…and you have something of the message of La Cenerentola” (Hastings Independent Press)
Barefoot Opera’s mission is to build the audiences for opera and encourage us all to sing. With this in mind, the international professional cast will be joined on stage for this show by members of local choirs and young people from Hastings and St Leonards.
Also accompanying the singers on stage is the small but perfectly formed Barefoot Opera ‘band’, headed by multi-talented, pianist, singer, composer and arranger Laurence Panter, with Lucy Mulgan on double bass, and Andrew Sparling on clarinet. Those of us lucky enough to have seen other Barefoot Opera productions will know that the inclusion of the band on-stage immerses the audience into the entire experience. “The band is like a stepping-stone into the opera…you are not just watching…you are visually and musically part of it.” (Audience feedback)
A show not to miss!
Sung in Italian with English subtitles. Doors open 7pm. Bar available. Tickets £20 from www.barefootopera.com and for children under 12 entry is free if accompanied by an adult.
Source: Press release from Barefoot Opera
Image Credits: Barefoot Opera .