Discover stories of the city at a world premiere of nine micro-operas from Streetwise Opera, The Sixteen, the BBC Concert Orchestra and theatre company 1927.
Re:Sound is made up of nine micro-operas that explore London, Nottingham and Manchester from the point of view of people who have experienced homelessness.
At workshops run by Streetwise Opera, participants come up with ideas, storylines and lyrics that peer beneath the surface of the city. They collaborate with composers, choreographers and digital animators to spin these inspirations into bold new musical works.
Members of Streetwise Opera are joined on stage by singers from renowned choral ensemble The Sixteen and the BBC Concert Orchestra.
The evening opens with Leonard Bernstein’s boisterous ode to Times Square, from his musical On the Town, which follows three sailors on a brief leave in New York. The musical’s familiar New York theme crops up in this symphonic panorama.
Winding its way through the first half of the concert is Errollyn Wallen’s Mighty River, a profound meditation on the history of the slave trade linking the movement of water with the human instinct to be free.
Gershwin explained that his ‘rhapsodic ballet’, An American in Paris, which also features here, ‘portray(s) the impressions of an American visitor… as he strolls about the city… and absorbs the French atmosphere.’ In anticipation of the piece’s 1928 premiere in New York, he supplied the orchestra with four French taxi horns.
Streetwise Opera is an opera company that empowers people recovering from homelessness to share their creativity and talent with audiences.
Re:Sound amplifies the voices of people who have been homeless as it explores how our cities can become spaces of tolerance, dialogue and inclusion.