Dido and Aeneas | Venus and Adonis

Henry Purcell & John Blow
9–11 AUGUST 2024

Opera Collective Ireland, together with the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, will perform a double bill of Dido & Aeneas by Henry Purcell and Venus & Adonis by John Blow.

Synopsis

Experience “The War of Love in Baroque Opera” a beautiful semi-staging of two baroque jewels. Sung in English with German surtitles.

Dates & Venues

9–11 August 2024
Kammeroper Schloss Rheinsberg, Germany

Press

‘Baroque singing (and opera) at its finest.

The Irish lyric soprano Anna Devin and the dark, granulated baritone Rory Musgrave impressively portray this unhappy couple with that initial cheerful lightness and euphoria that makes the tragic end all the more painful.

Devin and Musgrave form each word in an understandable way, stylistically they sing with a sure sense of ornamentation, precisely expressiveness and full of passion, as this work, which is so unique in music history, deserves. The rest of the cast, all recruited from the Resurgam ensemble , with the delightful Hannah Gries as Cupid, Christopher Bowen as the shepherd/hunter, Francis Brett as the second shepherd, Aisling Kenny as the shepherdess and Aaron O’Hare as the third shepherd, offers baroque singing at its finest.

We can report on a model performance that can compete with the best festivals in the world, not least thanks to the outstanding performance of the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, which is fantastic in terms of onomatopoeia and the articulatory eloquent string section , under the direction of the British conductor and harpsichordist Christian Curnyn.

The young mezzo-soprano Aebh Kelly brings all her skills to the table, including flawless technique, great high notes and the ability to expand dramatically.

The expert Rory Musgrave as Aeneas and Anna Devin as Belinda, as well as the Resurgam ensemble, which was overwhelming in terms of precision, vocal power and accuracy , offered baroque opera at its finest.

The performance in Rheinsberg appealed to me far more in all vocal and instrumental aspects, because of its more gripping drama, its liveliness, and not least because of the passion of all those involved.’
Online Merker, The International Cultural Platform

‘Akademie für Alte Musik, an internationally renowned ensemble of historical performance practice, provided an excellent musical foundation for the evening.

Aebh Kelly sang Dido with a beautiful, well-rounded mezzo-soprano voice. In terms of stage presence, she is a true Queen of Carthage, characterised by composure, grace, and dignity.

Rory Musgrave as Aeneas matched her perfectly with his baritone, capturing both the love and conflict of his character. The chorus, an important element in both operas, was impressively precise and expressive.

The production of Dido and Aeneas was rich in imaginative ideas. The hunt scene, where Dido appears as a female hunter à la Queen Elizabeth, was particularly striking. But it was the final scene, where Dido’s aria Remember me was sung with heart-wrenching beauty and expression, that left the audience in a state of breathless silence.

Venus and Adonis by John Blow: the singers once again excelled in their roles, and the chorus was particularly noteworthy, especially in the final chorus, which could have been taken from a requiem. It was a poignant and fitting conclusion to the Troja segment of the summer opera festival.

An evening full of highlights that showed how vulnerable yet powerful these Baroque works can be when performed by such a talented group of artists.’
MOZ / Märkische Oderzeitung

‘OCI did itself proud with its double-bill staging of a memorable three nights of baroque masterpieces, Dido and Aeneas plus Venus and Adonis, both of which provided soaring arias and glorious music that was praised resoundingly.’

‘What a wonderful occasion it was for Opera Collective Ireland’s founder and artistic director, Colette McGahon, who has driven her brilliant young company – here celebrating its tenth anniversary – with vision and resolve.’

‘The basis of OCI as a company is to provide high-standard performance opportunities for chosen singers in the gap period between formal education and the beginning of operatic careers. ‘Today you will find OCI alumni on stages all across Europe and further afield.’
Dick O’Riordan, Sunday Business Post

Programme download

Photos by Frances Marshall

Creative Team

Director Patrick Mason
Conductor Christian Curnyn
Design Concept Catherine Fay

Cast

Dido & Aeneas (Henry Purcell)
Dido Aebh Kelly
Belinda Anna Devin
Aeneas Rory Musgrave
Sorceress Carolyn Dobbin
Second Woman Hannah Gries
First Witch Charlotte O’Hare
Second Witch Sarah Luttrell
Sailor Christopher Bowen

Venus & Adonis (John Blow)
Venus Anna Devin
Adonis Rory Musgrave
Cupid Hannah Gries

Huntsman Christopher Bowen

Collaborating with

Orchestra Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin (Manager Uwe Schneider)
Harpsicordist Malcolm Proud
Ensemble Resurgam (Director Matthew Quinn)

This project is part of Zeitgeist Ireland 24, an initiative of Culture Ireland and the Embassy of Ireland in Germany.

What’s On

Find out more about OCI’s upcoming and past productions.

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Dido and Aeneas | Venus and Adonis

Synopsis

Dates & Venues

Press

Programme download

Creative Team

Cast

Collaborating with

What’s On

Committed to the needs of young Irish artists and Irish audiences alike, Opera Collective Ireland is grateful to the Arts Council of Ireland and all those who continue to support the work of the company.

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© Opera Collective Ireland. All rights reserved.
Design by Marshall Light Studio

Dido and Aeneas | Venus and Adonis

Synopsis

Dates & Venues

Press

Programme download

Creative Team

Cast

Collaborating with

What’s On

Committed to the needs of young Irish artists and Irish audiences alike, Opera Collective Ireland is grateful to the Arts Council of Ireland and all those who continue to support the work of the company.

Privacy Policy Cookies Governance

© Opera Collective Ireland. All rights reserved. Design by Marshall Light Studio

© Opera Collective Ireland. All rights reserved.
Design by Marshall Light Studio