Commissioned for the Brighton Festival in 1969 and performed on the West Pier, Harrison Birtwistle’s music theatre masterpiece has made a triumphant return home, this time to the entirely appropriate location of Harvey’s Depot in Lewes.
In Susannah Waters’ fabulously imagined, immersive production, James Garnon as St George rides gallantly into the brewer’s yard on a real horse. Over in the stables the sinister Dr Blood (Richard Attlee) pours something very nasty into The Slasher (Nick Tigg) while a team of heavies hold him down. If you’re lucky, you may be given an appointment with the doctor too. Inside, the audience sit to watch the fight on upturned crates, a path of green turf weaving through them, just like the macabre tale of the murdered boys at the piece’s core.
Nicola Blackwell’s design so perfectly evokes the English pastoral – right down to a cheeky string of sausages – it’s difficult to imagine a better setting than this.
Elizabeth Cragg as Mrs Green is a primal, muscular vocal foil to the birdsong and earthy stirrings of the score, played superbly here by the Multi-Story-Orchestra under the baton of Christopher Stark.
It’s Birtwistle’s 80th birthday this year. This production will make it a very happy one.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here