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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
Notes
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- Commissioned by the Australian Opera with assistance from the Sydney Opera House Trust.
Production Details
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First produced at the Sydney Opera House, 14 October 1995 - Director Neil Armfield
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Performed on the Forecourt, Sydney Opera House 28 October - 5 November 2016
COMPOSER Alan John
LIBRETTIST Dennis Watkins
& Alan John
CONDUCTOR Anthony Legge
DIRECTOR David Freeman
SET & COSTUME DESIGNER Dan Potra
LIGHTING DESIGNER Trent Suidgeest
VIDEO DESIGNER Marco Devetak
CHOREOGRAHER Andrew Hallsworth
SOUND DESIGNER Tony David Cray
THE ARCHITECT Adam Frandsen
ALEXANDRA MASON Stacey Alleaume
THE PREMIER Martin Buckingham
STEPHEN GOLDRING / WORKER Michael Petruccelli
POLITICIAN / REPORTER Samuel Dundas
THE ENGINEER David Greco
THE MAESTRO Adrian Tamburini
KEN MASON / ART LOVER / AIDE DE CAMP David Parkin
SKY / AUNT OLIVE / SOCIALITE Eva Kong
EARTH / AUNT JEAN / MISS HODGES Anna Yun
EILEEN MASON Rebecca Currier
THE QUEEN Gerry Connolly
MADAME MAGNA / SOCIALITE Jermaine Chau
WRITER / JUROR / REPORTER Simon Meadows
DAUGHTER / CLARE GOLDRING / SOCIALITE Zoe Drummond
FOREMAN / MUSIC LOVER Nicholas Jones
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
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Where Is the Great Australian Opera?
2018
single work
column
— Appears in: The Conversation , 17 August 2018;'In 1986, the Adelaide Festival staged an operatic adaptation of Nobel Prize-winning writer Patrick White’s 1957 novel Voss, a pivotal work in the Australian literary canon. The opera, with music by a leading figure of the classical music avant-garde, Richard Meale, and libretto by acclaimed novelist and poet, David Malouf, was conceived in the period leading up to the Bicentennial celebrations in 1988. It certainly tapped into the zeitgeist.' (Introduction)
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[Review Essay] The Eighth Wonder
2016
single work
review
essay
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , December no. 387 2016; (p. 44-45) ABR : Arts 2016; Opera and Politics are closely intertwined.The commissioning, composition and performance of opera have been used as political instruments in many different contexts, while the actual presentation of opera has often had an overtly political dimension, with operatic performance and opera theatres themselves constituting a significant reflection of political aspirations, national prestige, and identity. (Introduction) -
Ideal Stage for a Tribute to Utzon
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Australian , 31 October 2016; (p. 14)
— Review of The Eighth Wonder : Opera in Fifteen Scenes 1995 single work musical theatre -
Quiet Please
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 22-23 October 2016; (p. 6)
— Review of The Eighth Wonder : Opera in Fifteen Scenes 1995 single work musical theatre -
'A Comfortable Society' : The 1950s and Opera in Australia
2004
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Australasian Drama Studies , October no. 45 2004; (p. 10-29)
-
Quiet Please
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 22-23 October 2016; (p. 6)
— Review of The Eighth Wonder : Opera in Fifteen Scenes 1995 single work musical theatre -
Ideal Stage for a Tribute to Utzon
2016
single work
review
— Appears in: The Australian , 31 October 2016; (p. 14)
— Review of The Eighth Wonder : Opera in Fifteen Scenes 1995 single work musical theatre -
'A Comfortable Society' : The 1950s and Opera in Australia
2004
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Australasian Drama Studies , October no. 45 2004; (p. 10-29) -
[Review Essay] The Eighth Wonder
2016
single work
review
essay
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , December no. 387 2016; (p. 44-45) ABR : Arts 2016; Opera and Politics are closely intertwined.The commissioning, composition and performance of opera have been used as political instruments in many different contexts, while the actual presentation of opera has often had an overtly political dimension, with operatic performance and opera theatres themselves constituting a significant reflection of political aspirations, national prestige, and identity. (Introduction) -
Where Is the Great Australian Opera?
2018
single work
column
— Appears in: The Conversation , 17 August 2018;'In 1986, the Adelaide Festival staged an operatic adaptation of Nobel Prize-winning writer Patrick White’s 1957 novel Voss, a pivotal work in the Australian literary canon. The opera, with music by a leading figure of the classical music avant-garde, Richard Meale, and libretto by acclaimed novelist and poet, David Malouf, was conceived in the period leading up to the Bicentennial celebrations in 1988. It certainly tapped into the zeitgeist.' (Introduction)
Awards
- Sydney, New South Wales,