Organization

Stage director

Ashley Dean

Conductor

Timothy Redmond

Set designer

Anna Bonomelli

Lighting designer

Andrew May

Repetiteur

Aleksandra Myslek

Michael Rose

Singer

Soprano

Lorna McLean

Sāvitri

Tenor

Steven van der Linden

Satyavān

Yongqiu Yuan

Louisa Stirland

The Bird

Bass-baritone

Emyr Lloyd Jones

Blond Eckbert

Jonah Halton

Waltherd

Hugo

Die alte Frau

Guildhall School of Music and Drama

Opera Double Bill: Sāvitri & Blond Eckbert

London

United Kingdom

GSMD Silk Street Theatre

Opera Double Bill: Sāvitri & Blond Eckbert: Savîtrî Holst (+1 More)

Public

Savitri

Approved

Two imaginative and haunting British chamber operas from opposite ends of the 20th century feature in Guildhall School’s summer opera double bill., directed by Ashley Dean and conducted by Timothy Redmond.

Composed in 1916, Holst’s 35-minute opera Sāvitri tells the story of the title character’s devotion to her husband Satyavan in the face of Death. Based on an episode from a Sanskrit epic, Holst used his studies of this ancient language to translate the story into his own English libretto, which combines with colourful orchestration to explore the power of love and questions of mortality.

Judith Weir also wrote her own libretto for her 1993 work Blond Eckbert, taking inspiration from the dark fairy tale by Romantic German writer Ludwig Tieck. The eerie and captivating opera by the Master of the King’s Music tells the story of Eckbert and his wife Berthe, whose solitary life together in the forest unravels after a mysterious visitor opens up a disturbing door to the past. This Guildhall production offers the chance to hear the one-act, pocket version of the opera.

“One of the gems of early 20th-century British music” – The Guardian on Sāvitri

“Hauntingly beautiful” – The Telegraph on Blond Eckbert
 

Please note that this production contains adult content, including themes of violence, death, suicide and mental illness. Haze will be used.

English

Opera Double Bill: Sāvitri & Blond Eckbert by Holst, Weir, From (2023/2023), Directed by Ashley Dean,, Conductor Timothy Redmond, GSMD Silk Street Theatre, London, United Kingdom

Performance credits (Cast & Crew )

Cast

Crew

Program, About & Synopsis

Photos

Further reading

Performance Dates & Venues

Venues