Leonard Bernstein at 100

Leonard Bernstein's "Trouble in Tahiti" to stream for free on Wed., May 6!

Posted May 1, 2020

TROUBLE IN TAHITI:
LEONARD BERNSTEIN’S 50 MINUTE OPERA WILL STREAM FOR FREE ON WED 6 MAY

Trouble in Tahiti is being made available to stream for free as part of the Company’s digital program, Opera North at Home, during the Covid-19 lockdown. It will be streamed at 7pm BST on Wednesday, May 6, on Opera North’s YouTube channel, where it will be available on demand until Monday 1 June.

operanorth.co.uk/watch-online. Trouble in Tahiti was filmed live at Leeds Grand Theatre in October 2017 and directed by Ross MacGibbon. The production, which was directed for the stage by Matthew Eberhardt and conducted by Tobias Ringborg, formed part of Opera North’s award-winning series of short operas, The Little Greats. West Side Story or On The Town, but like his most famous musicals, Trouble in Tahiti combines the composer’s genius for melodic invention and heartfelt emotion with the distinctively American sound of Hollywood and Broadway. Trouble in Tahiti is set in 1950s suburbia, where Sam and Dinah appear to have the perfect life in their little white house. But their growing detachment exposes a mutual feeling that they are trapped in a life that has turned into a lie. Sam escapes to the hyper-masculine, win-or-lose world of work and the gym, while Dinah loses herself in the movies, where the hit picture of the day is the ominously-titled Trouble in Tahiti. Kiss Me, Kate, Harry Easter in Street Scene, and Count Almaviva in The Marriage of Figaro. Trouble in Tahiti is due to return to Opera North in October 2020. It will feature in a double bill of Bernstein works alongside a new co-production with Phoenix Dance Theatre, choreographed by Aletta Collins to the Symphonic Dances from West Side Story, which interprets Bernstein’s thrilling and poignant music outside of the narrative of his most famous musical. Richard Mantle, General Director, Opera North, comments:
“Following fantastic critical and audience response to Trouble in Tahiti when we performed this show in 2017, we are pleased to now be able to re-release this film of the production for audiences to watch online, including in accessible formats. It’s a really funny, bitingly satirical and thought-provoking work, with wonderful musical numbers, which deserves to be much better known than it is. Sonali Rai, Audio Description and Broadcast Manager, RNIB, comments:
“We're delighted that Opera North are making their audio described film of this rarely-performed Opera North at Home
The coronavirus crisis has led Opera North to cancel or postpone all of its public activity for the rest of the season, until at least the end of July. Trouble in Tahiti has been made available to stream with kind permission from Sky Arts. It can also currently be watched via Now TV and Sky on-demand services. From Tuesday 2 June to Wednesday 1 July, the film will also be available via OperaVision (operavision.eu).

operanorth.co.uk

Trouble in Tahiti
Music and Libretto Leonard Bernstein
By permission of Boosey and Hawkes Publishers Limited and Universal Music Publishing

Sam Quirijn de Lang
Dinah Wallis Giunta
Trio Fflur Wyn, Joseph Shovelton, Nicholas Butterfield
Junior Charlie Southby

Conductor Tobias Ringborg
Director Matthew Eberhardt
Set Designer Charles Edwards
Costume Designer Hannah Clark
Lighting Design Charles Edwards, Ben Pickersgill
Movement Director Tim Claydon

The Orchestra of Opera North
Film credits:
Director Ross MacGibbon
Line Producer Nikki Weston
Executive Producer Helen Spencer