Xerxes

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Event Xerxes
Venue Civic Theatre, Auckland, New Zealand
Umbrella Event Auckland Arts Festival
First Date 2 March 2011
Last Date March 2011
Dates Estimated No
Status Professional
World Premiere No
Part of a Tour Yes
Description Xerxes is about love gone wrong, love gone right. Full of wonderful funny characters with a hilarious plot held together by beautiful music. Xerxes opens with a typically Handelian overture, then we hear the one airs everyone knows, 'Ombra mai fu', better known as 'Handel's Largo', sung by Xerxes to a plane tree…. Roger Hodgman's direction takes care with the comedy of the opera at the expense of Handel's more serious drama - the plane tree becomes an insignificant pot plant, while the bridge of boats with which Xerxes crosses the hellespont is downgraded to a mere model….
Primary Genre Music Theatre
Secondary Genre Comedy
Opera
Organisations
Contributors
Name Function Notes
Jacqueline Coats Assistant Director
George Frideric Handel Composer
Wolfgang Katschner Conductor
Trelise Cooper Costume Designer
Roger Hodgman Director
Matt Scott Lighting Designer
John Verryt Set Designer
Stephen Bennett Singer Elviro
Tobias Cole Singer Xerxes
Kristen Darragh Singer Amastre
William Purefoy Singer Arsamene
Martin Snell Singer Ariodate
Tiffany Speight Singer Romilda
Amy Wilkinson Singer Atalanta
Further Information Orchestral accompaniment by Germany's Lautten Compagney, conducted by Wolfgang Katschner. A co-produciton with Victorian Opera which premiered it in Melbourne in 2009. Limited Venues. St James Theatre, Wellington, 15 - 19 March. The first fully-staged production of a Handel opera in New Zealand.
Event Status Completed
Event Identifier 203433
Dataset Theatre Aotearoa