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Sonya's Story
''Sonya's Story'' (Russian: История Сони) is an opera by the British composer Neal Thornton to a libretto based on the original Russian text of Anton Chekhov's 1899 play ''Uncle Vanya''. The libretto reproduces passages from ''Uncle Vanya'' in English translation with additional spoken text by Neal Thornton. ''Sonya's Story'' premiered on 7 August 2010 at the Riverside Studios in Londonto celebrate Chekhov's 150th anniversary. The production, part of the Tête à Tête festival was directed by Sally Burgess and designed by Charles Phu.Duchen, Jessica (24 August 2010)"Review: ''Sonya’s Story'', Riverside Studios, London" ''The Independent'' Set in late 19th century Russia, ''Sonya’s Story'' is a musical psycho-drama portraying Sonya's responses to her life crises and the limitations presented by her social and personal circumstances. It is the first opera adapted from ''Uncle Vanya''. Roles References External linksOfficial website of ''Sonya's Story''*Burg ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Opera
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librettist and incorporates a number of the performing arts, such as acting, scenery, costume, and sometimes dance or ballet. The performance is typically given in an opera house, accompanied by an orchestra or smaller musical ensemble, which since the early 19th century has been led by a conductor. Although musical theatre is closely related to opera, the two are considered to be distinct from one another. Opera is a key part of the Western classical music tradition. Originally understood as an entirely sung piece, in contrast to a play with songs, opera has come to include numerous genres, including some that include spoken dialogue such as '' Singspiel'' and '' Opéra comique''. In traditional number opera, singers employ two st ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Libretto
A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major liturgical works, such as the Mass, requiem and sacred cantata, or the story line of a ballet. ''Libretto'' (; plural ''libretti'' ), from Italian, is the diminutive of the word '' libro'' ("book"). Sometimes other-language equivalents are used for libretti in that language, ''livret'' for French works, ''Textbuch'' for German and ''libreto'' for Spanish. A libretto is distinct from a synopsis or scenario of the plot, in that the libretto contains all the words and stage directions, while a synopsis summarizes the plot. Some ballet historians also use the word ''libretto'' to refer to the 15 to 40 page books which were on sale to 19th century ballet audiences in Paris and contained a very detailed description of the ballet's story, scene by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anton Chekhov
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career as a playwright produced four classics, and his best short stories are held in high esteem by writers and critics."Stories ... which are among the supreme achievements in prose narrative.Vodka miniatures, belching and angry cats George Steiner's review of ''The Undiscovered Chekhov'', in ''The Observer'', 13 May 2001. Retrieved 16 February 2007. Along with Henrik Ibsen and August Strindberg, Chekhov is often referred to as one of the three seminal figures in the birth of early modernism in the theatre. Chekhov was a physician by profession. "Medicine is my lawful wife", he once said, "and literature is my mistress." Chekhov renounced the theatre after the reception of ''The Seagull'' in 1896, but the play was revived to acclaim in 1 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Uncle Vanya
''Uncle Vanya'' ( rus, Дя́дя Ва́ня, r=Dyádya Ványa, p=ˈdʲædʲə ˈvanʲə) is a play by the Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. It was first published in 1898, and was first produced in 1899 by the Moscow Art Theatre under the direction of Konstantin Stanislavski. The play portrays the visit of an elderly professor and his glamorous, much younger second wife, Yelena, to the rural estate that supports their urban lifestyle. Two friends—Vanya, brother of the professor's late first wife, who has long managed the estate, and Astrov, the local doctor—both fall under Yelena's spell, while bemoaning the ''ennui'' of their provincial existence. Sonya, the professor's daughter by his first wife, who has worked with Vanya to keep the estate going, suffers from her unrequited feelings for Astrov. Matters are brought to a crisis when the professor announces his intention to sell the estate, Vanya and Sonya's home, with a view to investing the proceeds to achieve a higher ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Riverside Studios
Riverside Studios is an arts centre on the banks of the River Thames in Hammersmith, London, England. The venue plays host to contemporary performance, film, visual art exhibitions and television production. Having closed for redevelopment in September 2014, Riverside Studios reopened in August 2019 with one of the first television broadcasts from Studio 1 being Channel 4's UK election coverage. Film studio In 1933, a former Victorian iron foundry on Crisp Road, London, was bought by Triumph Films and converted into a relatively compact film studio with two stages and a dubbing theatre. In 1935 the studios were taken over by Julius Hagen (then owner of Twickenham Studios) with the idea of using Riverside as an overflow for making quota quickies. However, by 1937 his company had gone into liquidation. Between 1937 and 1946, the studios were owned by Jack Buchanan and produced such films as ''We'll Meet Again'' (1943) with Vera Lynn and '' The Seventh Veil'' (1945) with James ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sally Burgess
Sally Burgess FRCM (born 9 October 1953) is a South African-born British operatic lyric mezzo-soprano, opera director, and educator. She has been a Fellow and Professor of Vocal Studies at the Royal College of Music since 2004, as well as teaching stagecraft. She has also taught at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London. Biography and career Born in South Africa, Burgess studied at the Royal College of Music in London with Marion Studholme and Josephine Veasey. She made her debut on the opera stage as Zerlina in '' Don Giovanni'' with English National Opera. The ENO gave her a solo contract when she was only 23, and during her career she has sung over 40 roles with the company. Amongst the other companies where has appeared are: the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden where she made her debut as Siebel in ''Faust'' with Alfredo Kraus, the Metropolitan Opera, the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, the Grand Théâtre de Genève, Switzerland as Fricka in ''Der Ring des Nibelun ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charles Phu
Charles Phu (Traditional Chinese: 符傳禎; Russian: Чарльз Фу), is a London-based architectural designer and opera set designer. Countries and regions in which his design works are located include Europe, Russia, USA, China, India, Taiwan, and the Middle East. Phu is the founder and design director of the London-based design practice Office for Architectural Culture. He designed the CCK Presidential Memorial Library and Museum in Taipei, and the chief architectural designer of 'Okhta Centre', now known as Lakhta Centre, in Saint Petersburg. Charles Phu was selected one of the 18 prominent international architectural designers by European journalists in 2011. Phu has made a number of studies on architecture and cultures including Uyghurs, Mongolians, Uzbeks along the ancient Silk Road. Designs Phu designed a number of landmark buildings, tall buildings, cultural buildings and master plan designs. Amongst his design works are: *CCK Chi-Hai Cultural Park - Chiang Ching-Ku ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was published on Saturday 26 March 2016, leaving only the online edition. The newspaper was controlled by Tony O'Reilly's Irish Independent News & Media from 1997 until it was sold to the Russian oligarch and former KGB Officer Alexander Lebedev in 2010. In 2017, Sultan Muhammad Abuljadayel bought a 30% stake in it. The daily edition was named National Newspaper of the Year at the 2004 British Press Awards. The website and mobile app had a combined monthly reach of 19,826,000 in 2021. History 1986 to 1990 Launched in 1986, the first issue of ''The Independent'' was published on 7 October in broadsheet format.Dennis Griffiths (ed.) ''The Encyclopedia of the British Press, 1422–1992'', London & Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1992, p. 330 It was pro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance, such as an orchestral or choral concert. It has been defined as "the art of directing the simultaneous performance of several players or singers by the use of gesture." The primary duties of the conductor are to interpret the score in a way which reflects the specific indications in that score, set the tempo, ensure correct entries by ensemble members, and "shape" the phrasing where appropriate. Conductors communicate with their musicians primarily through hand gestures, usually with the aid of a baton, and may use other gestures or signals such as eye contact. A conductor usually supplements their direction with verbal instructions to their musicians in rehearsal. The conductor typically stands on a raised podium with a large music stand for the full score, which contains the musical notation for all the instruments or voices. Since the mid-19th century, most conductors have not played an instrument when conducting, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
