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Britten's Children
''Britten's Children'' is a scholarly 2006 book by John Bridcut that describes the English composer Benjamin Britten's relationship with several adolescent boys. Bridcut has been praised for treating such a sensitive subject in "an impeccably unsensational tone". The Britten-Pears Foundation described the book as having been "enthusiastically received as shedding new light on one of the most interesting aspects of Britten's life and career, in a study that is thoroughly researched, wonderfully readable and thought-provoking". Bridcut's book followed his television documentary ''Britten's Children'' shown on BBC2 in June 2004. Bridcut writes that 13-year-old boys were Britten's ideal. He liked to imagine himself as still thirteen years old and once explained his ability to write so well for children, "It's because I'm still thirteen". Bridcut provides ample evidence that Britten was sexually attracted to young boys, but similarly shows that it is unlikely that Britten ever steppe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eton College
Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, Cambridge, making it the 18th-oldest Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC) school. Eton is particularly well-known for its history, wealth, and notable alumni, called Old Etonians. Eton is one of only three public schools, along with Harrow (1572) and Radley (1847), to have retained the boys-only, boarding-only tradition, which means that its boys live at the school seven days a week. The remainder (such as Rugby in 1976, Charterhouse in 1971, Westminster in 1973, and Shrewsbury in 2015) have since become co-educational or, in the case of Winchester, as of 2021 are undergoing the transition to that status. Eton has educated prime ministers, world leaders, Nobel laureates, Academy Award and BAFTA award-winning actors, and ge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was founded by Arthur B. Sleigh in 1855 as ''The Daily Telegraph & Courier''. Considered a newspaper of record over ''The Times'' in the UK in the years up to 1997, ''The Telegraph'' generally has a reputation for high-quality journalism, and has been described as being "one of the world's great titles". The paper's motto, "Was, is, and will be", appears in the editorial pages and has featured in every edition of the newspaper since 19 April 1858. The paper had a circulation of 363,183 in December 2018, descending further until it withdrew from newspaper circulation audits in 2019, having declined almost 80%, from 1.4 million in 1980.United Newspapers PLC and Fleet Holdings PLC', Monopolies and Mergers Commission (1985), pp. 5–16. Its si ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thomas Mann
Paul Thomas Mann ( , ; ; 6 June 1875 – 12 August 1955) was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and the 1929 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. His highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novellas are noted for their insight into the psychology of the artist and the intellectual. His analysis and critique of the European and German soul used modernized versions of German and Biblical stories, as well as the ideas of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Arthur Schopenhauer. Mann was a member of the Hanseatic Mann family and portrayed his family and class in his first novel, ''Buddenbrooks''. His older brother was the radical writer Heinrich Mann and three of Mann's six children – Erika Mann, Klaus Mann and Golo Mann – also became significant German writers. When Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933, Mann fled to Switzerland. When World War II broke out in 1939, he moved to the United States, then returned to Swit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Death In Venice (opera)
''Death in Venice'', Op. 88, is an opera in two acts by Benjamin Britten, his last. The opera is based on the novella ''Death in Venice'' by Thomas Mann. Myfanwy Piper wrote the English libretto. It was first performed at Snape Maltings, near Aldeburgh, England, on 16 June 1973. The often acerbic and severe score is marked by some haunting soundscapes of "ambiguous Venice". The boy Tadzio is portrayed by a silent dancer, to gamelan-like percussion accompaniment. The music of the opera is precise, direct and movingly understated. Composition history Britten had been contemplating the novella for many years and began work in September 1970 with approaches to Piper and to Golo Mann, son of the author. Because of agreements between Warner Brothers and the estate of Thomas Mann for the production of Luchino Visconti's 1971 film, Britten was advised not to see the movie when it was released.Strode, Rosamund "A 'Death in Venice chronicle" in ''Benjamin Britten: Death in Venice.'' (Camb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Rape Of Lucretia (opera)
''The Rape of Lucretia'' (Op. 37) is an opera in two acts by Benjamin Britten, written for Kathleen Ferrier, who performed the title role. Ronald Duncan based his English libretto on André Obey's play '. Performance history The opera was first performed at Glyndebourne in England on 12 July 1946. It is the first work to which Britten applied his term " chamber opera." The opera debuted in the United States on Broadway at the Ziegfeld Theatre in a production staged by Agnes de Mille which opened on 29 December 1948 and closed on 15 January 1949 after 23 performances. The cast notably included Giorgio Tozzi as Tarquinius, Kitty Carlisle as Lucretia, Lidija Franklin as Bianca, Brenda Lewis as the Female Chorus, and Adelaide Bishop as Lucia. In 1996 the opera was presented at the Opera Theatre of St. Louis directed by Britten expert and friend, Colin Graham. It also appeared in the Opera Company of Philadelphia's 2009 season. In 2013, the opera was performed for the first ti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charles Mackerras
Mackerras in 2005 Sir Alan Charles MacLaurin Mackerras (; 1925 2010) was an Australian conductor. He was an authority on the operas of Janáček and Mozart, and the comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan. He was long associated with the English National Opera (and its predecessor) and Welsh National Opera and was the first Australian chief conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. He also specialized in Czech music as a whole, producing many recordings for the Czech label Supraphon. Early life and education Mackerras was born in Schenectady, New York, to Australian parents, Alan Mackerras and Catherine MacLaurin. His father was an electrical engineer and a Quaker. Mackerras grew up in a very musical family and his mother was immensely cultured. In 1928, when Charles was aged two, the family returned to Sydney, Australia. They initially lived in the suburb of Rose Bay, and in 1933 they moved to the then semi-rural suburb of Turramurra. Mackerras was the eldest of seven ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Turn Of The Screw (opera)
''The Turn of the Screw'' is a 20th-century English chamber opera composed by Benjamin Britten with a libretto by Myfanwy Piper, "wife of the artist John Piper, who had been a friend of the composer since 1935 and had provided designs for several of the operas". Kennedy, Michael, "Benjamin Britten", in The libretto is based on the 1898 novella ''The Turn of the Screw'' by Henry James. The opera was commissioned by the Venice Biennale and given its world premiere on 14 September 1954, at the Teatro La Fenice, Venice. The original recording was made during January of the next year, with the composer conducting. Described as one of the most dramatically appealing English operas, the opera in two acts has a prologue and sixteen scenes, each preceded by a variation on the twelve-note 'Screw' theme. Typically of Britten, the music mixes tonality and dissonance, with Britten's recurrent use of a twelve-tone figure being perhaps a nod to the approach of Arnold Schoenberg. Thematical ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Hemmings
David Edward Leslie Hemmings (18 November 1941 – 3 December 2003) was an English actor and director. He is best remembered for his roles in British films and television programmes of the 1960s and 1970s, particularly the 1966 mystery film ''Blowup'', directed by Michelangelo Antonioni. Early in his career, Hemmings was a boy soprano appearing in operatic roles. In 1967, he co-founded the Hemdale Film Corporation. Early life David Hemmings was born in Guildford, Surrey, to a biscuit salesman father. Benjamin Britten His education at Alleyn's School, Glyn Grammar School in Ewell, and the Arts Educational Schools led him to start his career performing as a boy soprano in several works by the composer Benjamin Britten, who formed a close friendship with him at this time. Most notably, Hemmings created the role of Miles in Britten's chamber opera ''Turn of the Screw'' (1954). His intimate, yet innocent, relationship with Britten is described in John Bridcut's book '' Britten's ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Albert Herring
''Albert Herring'', Op. 39, is a chamber opera in three acts by Benjamin Britten. Composed in the winter of 1946 and the spring of 1947, this comic opera was a successor to his serious opera ''The Rape of Lucretia''. The libretto, by Eric Crozier, was based on Guy de Maupassant's novella '' Le Rosier de Madame Husson'', with the action transposed to an English setting. Composition history After having composed and staged ''The Rape of Lucretia'', Britten decided he should attempt a comedy, preferably set in England.Nigel Douglas. "Some personal memories of Benjamin Britten, the English Opera Group and ''Albert Herring''". Booklet note to Nimbus NI 5824/6 (2008). Crozier suggested adapting the Maupassant short story ''Le rosier de Madame Husson'' and transplanting it to the Suffolk landscape already familiar to Britten from his home in Snape. Britten composed ''Albert Herring'' at his home, The Old Mill at Snape, in the winter of 1946 and the spring of 1947. He scored the oper ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Spenser
David Spenser (''né'' De Saram; 12 March 1934 – 20 July 2013)John Tydemanbr>David Spenser obituary ''The Guardian'', 1 August 2013. Retrieved 1 August 2013 was a British actor, director, producer and writer. Spenser played the title role in a 1948 radio production of Richmal Crompton's ''Just William'', and also appeared in popular films and TV series including ''Doctor Who''. His documentary about Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies won an International Emmy Award. He was the elder brother of actor Jeremy Spenser. Aged 11 he appeared in plays on BBC radio's '' Children's Hour''. He was cast in ''Just William'' by the author of the books, Richmal Crompton. He played Harry in the first production of Benjamin Britten's opera ''Albert Herring''. Spenser was a regular on television, with appearances in episodes of ''Z-Cars'', ''Dixon of Dock Green'', and ''The Saint''. In 1967 Spenser appeared as Thonmi in the ''Doctor Who'' serial ''The Abominable Snowmen'' alongside Patrick Troughton. S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Little Sweep
''The Little Sweep'', Op. 45, is an opera for children in three scenes by the English composer Benjamin Britten, with a libretto by Eric Crozier. ''Let's Make an Opera!'' ''The Little Sweep'' is the second part of a stage production entitled ''Let's Make an Opera!''. The first part takes the form of a play in which the cast portray contemporary amateur performers conceiving, creating and rehearsing the opera. Intended as an introduction to and demystification of the operatic genre, the play also provides an opportunity to rehearse the audience in the four "Audience Songs" they will sing after the interval. The format of the play altered radically in the early months of its existence, passing through at least three versions (including one specially written for radio) utilising different approaches to the exposition. An initial version set "on the stage of any village hall" during an open dress-rehearsal for an already-written work morphs into one where the "Little Sweep" narrati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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