What a piece of work is a man! How noble in reason! How infinite in faculty! And yet, to me, what is this quintessence of dust?
Shakespeare’s searing portrait of a prince in crisis intimidated nearly all of history’s greatest opera composers. Not so for Australian composer Brett Dean, who saw in Hamlet’s splintering sanity a perfect match for his evocative music.
Now is your chance to see one of the most successful operas ever composed by an Australian. Commissioned and premiered by Glyndebourne, and performed at the Metropolitan Opera of New York and the Adelaide Festival to great acclaim, Hamlet finally gets its Sydney Opera House debut.
Dean composed an expansive sound world, with a massive orchestra and chorus, at times positioned around the theatre. The effect is dramatic and luxurious, a wall of voices pressing in on Hamlet’s troubled mind. Electronics create musical ghosts. Librettist Matthew Jocelyn carves up the text so the familiar pops up in unexpected places.
One of Australia’s great Shakespearean directors, Neil Armfield created this “viscerally physical” (Sydney Morning Herald) production for Glyndebourne, collaborating with Australian designers Ralph Myers and Alice Babidge to produce a slick royal court with darkness at its heart.
The demanding title role needs an extraordinary performer: we’re excited to bring Allan Clayton to make his Sydney Opera House debut. His performance as Hamlet is “tremendous” (The Guardian), “mesmerising and monumental” (The Conversation). Lorina Gore reprises her “spellbinding” Helpmann Award-winning performance as Ophelia alongside an outstanding cast. Contemporary opera specialist Tim Anderson conducts.
3hr 25min (incl. interval)
20th July, 2024
9th August, 2024
CAST
HAMLET: Allan Clayton
OPHELIA: Lorina Gore
CLAUDIUS: Rod Gilfry
POLONIUS: Kanen Breen
HORATIO: Samuel Dundas
GHOST OF OLD HAMLET/GRAVEDIGGER/PLAYER 1: Jud Arthur
LAERTES: Nicholas Jones
ROSENCRANTZ: Russell Harcourt
GUILDENSTERN: Christopher Lowrey
MARCELLUS/PLAYER 4: Andrew Moran
PLAYER 2: Virgilio Marino
PLAYER 3: Iain Henderson
ACCORDIONIST: James Crabb
Opera Australia Orchestra Opera Australia Chorus
CREATIVES
MUSIC BY: Brett Dean
LIBRETTO BY: Matthew Jocelyn after William Shakespeare
CONDUCTOR: Tim Anderson
DIRECTOR: Neil Armfield
SET DESIGNER: Ralph Myers
COSTUME DESIGNER: Alice Babidge
LIGHTING DESIGNER: Jon Clark
SOUND DESIGNER: Bob Scott
LIGHTING REALISED BY: Peter Harrison
MOVEMENT DIRECTOR: Denni Sayers
Unfortunately, tickets for this event are no longer available.
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