★★★★★ ‘exhilarating blend of opera, theatre and film … extraordinary … thrilling’ – The Guardian
Landmark Productions and Wide Open Opera
The Second Violinist
a new opera by Donnacha Dennehy and Enda Walsh
What does he do when he goes home?
Following the sensational success of their first opera, The Last Hotel, Donnacha Dennehy and Enda Walsh join forces once again on an explosive new production.
One of Ireland’s leading actors, Aaron Monaghan, plays the second violinist. He is joined by singers Máire Flavin, Sharon Carty and Benedict Nelson. Ryan McAdams conducts the 16-strong Chorus of Wide Open Opera, and Crash Ensemble, the group founded by Dennehy and described by the New York Times as ‘the Irish new-music band that plays with the energy and spirit of a rock group’.
Joined by the phenomenal creative team from The Last Hotel, Donnacha Dennehy’s music is infused with lingering echoes of the Renaissance works of Carlo Gesualdo, creating a sonorous backdrop for the haunting orchestrations and pulsating rhythms that drive the opera to its inexorable conclusion.
A search for beauty in a dark, dark world.
‘searingly powerful … devastating … heartbreaking … thrilling … mesmerizing’ – The Guardian on The Last Hotel
The Second Violinist has been awarded the prestigious FEDORA – GENERALI Prize for Opera 2017. For more details, see here
Landmark Productions / Irish National Opera (producers)
The Second Violinist is produced by Landmark Productions and Irish National Opera. Landmark Productions is one of Ireland’s leading theatre producers, whose recent work includes several productions by Enda Walsh: The Walworth Farce, starring Brendan Gleeson, Brian Gleeson and Domhnall Gleeson; the world premiere of The Last Hotel, in a co-production with Wide Open Opera; and the multi award-winning musical Once. Its award-winning co-productions with Galway International Arts Festival include the world premieres of Walsh’s Arlington, Ballyturk and Misterman.
Irish National Opera is a newly formed company that merges two of Ireland’s most innovative opera producers – Wide Open Opera and Opera Theatre Company. Irish National Opera has a highly ambitious vision for Ireland’s opera sector, which builds on the solid foundations of Opera Theatre Company and Wide Open Opera, acknowledging their individual values and missions and taking their operational model to a new level.
Landmark Productions
Producer: Anne Clarke / [email protected]
Irish National Opera
Artistic Director: Fergus Sheil / [email protected]