Purcell's Dido and Aeneas

Sestina Music

This April Northern Ireland’s award-winning early music ensemble, SESTINA, presents its latest production to audiences in Derry-Londonderry, Belfast and Newry. Following successful tours of The Fairy Queen and King Arthur, the group continues its exploration of Henry Purcell’s semi-operas, this time tackling the tragic tale of doomed lovers in Dido and Aeneas. To complement this unfinished story, music from Matthew Locke’s Psyche will form a prologue to preface the drama to follow.
SESTINA, which is supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, will again collaborate with esteemed stage director Thomas Guthrie and dancer/choreographer Bridget Madden. The singers will be accompanied by a group of experienced period instrument players and conducted by musical director Mark Chambers.
Ciaran Scullion, Head of Music, Arts Council of Northern Ireland, commented:
“Sestina is an impressive organisation which continues to present high-quality performances, specialising in early music. The organisation offers a vital platform for the mentoring, training and development of our local, aspiring young performers. This current tour promises to be captivating and spell-binding and is not to be missed.”
Dido and Aeneas, based on book IV of Virgil’s Aeneid, depicts the ill-fated love story between Dido, Queen of Carthage, and the Trojan hero Aeneas. After an initial whirlwind romance, Aeneas is called into battle and Dido’s despair at his departure manifests itself in the heart-wrenching aria ‘When I am laid in earth’, BBC Radio 3 listeners’ favourite operatic aria. Purcell weaves this story of love and loss through incredible music from a range of characters including witches, sailors, echoes, handmaidens and a fiendish sorceress intent on destruction. A musical feast for the senses!.
Friday 1 April, 7.30pm – The Glassworks, Derry-Londonderry
Saturday 2 April, 7.30pm – The Ulster Hall, Belfast
Sunday 3 April, 7.30pm – Church of the Sacred Heart, Newry