The Belfast Ensemble are set to present the world premiere of Conor Mitchell’s The Musician: A Horror Opera for Children, which will be streamed from the 12th to the 14th March.
This new darkly comic opera aimed at children retells the familiar story of the Pied Piper and marks the Belfast Ensemble’s next step following on from Abomination.
The Musician is also set to become the first opera to be performed in Northern Ireland since the pandemic began last year.
Written, composed and directed by Conor Mitchell, the production will be staged by using the latest in technological innovation, to ensure that the medieval story is told in a 21st century way. It will be filmed live for Belfast Children’s Festival in the Lyric Theatre Belfast.
The Belfast Ensemble’s take on Grimm’s fairy tale The Pied Piper of Hamelin gives the story a horror prequel harking back to the legend’s roots. A musician in the making is mistreated by the people around him. With the power to control mice and rats with his melodies, will he choose to help the town or take bloody revenge? A tale of poetic justice at a time when artists are in crisis, this is a Covid-reactive production that asks children big questions about art and society.
Conducted by Tom Brady, the cast for the production includes: Matthew Cavan, Paul Carey Jones, Rebecca Murphy and Sarah Richmond.
Talking about the news, Artistic Director of the Belfast Ensemble Conor Mitchell said: “The Musician is the only Northern Irish opera created in lockdown. It’s really the company’s candle in the dark for children
everywhere showing that anything is possible with imagination.”
The Musician will be streamed from the 12th to the 14th March. Tickets are £5 per device, and can be accessed on demand via the QFT player: https://www.youngatart.co.uk/whats-on/musician