Opera Scotland

First Scottish performance of Owen Wingrave

Posted 14 Aug 2014

Britten's opera was commissioned by the BBC for television, and is based on a theme that had haunted Britten since the 1930s - pacifism. 

Owen Wingrave, to a libretto by Myfanwy Piper drawn from Henry James's story, explores a troubled young man's fight to escape from his family's militaristic background. To present this, Britten created music of angry intensity and desolate beauty.

In this production an impressive cast mixes leading singers Susan Bullock, Janis Kelly, Richard Berkeley-Steele and Jonathan Summers - with emerging talent from the Britten-Pears Young Artist Programme including Ross Ramgobin and Isaiah Bell.  Mark Wigglesworth conducts the Britten Pears Orchestra in David Matthews's chamber version of the score. 

The co-production, directed by Neil Bartlett, is a joint project between Aldeburgh Festival and the Edinburgh International Festival. 

To see more images from the production and then go through to book your tickets click here.