Venus & Adonis
12 November/20h00
13 November/20h00
France /
Rennes
Venus and Adonis, subtitled A Masque for the entertainment of the King, is now regarded as the first English opera. Unlike the earlier form of the masque, which incorporates music into a spoken play, all the words in this work are sung. Its composer, John Blow, organist at Westminster Abbey, was one of the most highly regarded musicians in England during the reigns of Charles II and James II. He was notably the teacher of the young Henry Purcell, who took Venus and Adonisas a model for his famous opera Dido and Aeneas — the parallels are striking.
The action, very compact, takes us in a short space of time from a pastoral world to tragedy. It is framed by instrumental music following the model of Lully: a French-style overture, followed by entrances and dances. The work is a true opera in miniature, full of charm.
“Drawn concerts are a way of telling a story differently on stage. They require no sets or props, but offer a pictorial interpretation of the work being performed.”
The challenge is ambitious: to align ourselves together in order to create a musical and illustrative union. To achieve this, I must follow—for my part—a sort of drawn choreography, where every line and every gesture is meticulously executed in parallel with the story.
“Drawn concerts are a way of telling a story differently on stage. They require no sets or props, but offer a pictorial interpretation of the work being performed.”
The challenge is ambitious: to align ourselves together in order to create a musical and illustrative union. To achieve this, I must follow—for my part—a sort of drawn choreography, where every line and every gesture is meticulously executed in parallel with the story.
From my perspective as a painter and children’s illustrator, the link between image and narrative is very natural. It allows, in my view, for an amplification: I deploy the drawing in forms that are sometimes symbolic, sometimes figurative, like paintings brimming with colour and poetry. My pencil strokes, though digital, move as if on a canvas, gradually, sometimes revealing elements drawn beforehand, but are mainly constructed live before the audience’s eyes.”
Emma Bertin
Duration – 1 hour 30 minutes
