Audiences in Hanoi will have an opportunity to enjoy ‘The Little Sweep’ – a short opera by British composer Benjamin Britten on February 3 and 4 at the Hanoi Opera House.
The opera, which is about friendship and aspirations for a better world, will be performed by the Vietnam National Opera Ballet under British conductor Graham Sutcliffe.
The opera tells the story of Sam, who escapes a life as a child chimney-sweep through the resourcefulness of a group of children who live in a house where he is sent to work.
Deputy Director of the British Council Vietnam Simon Beardow said that “this event is part of our arts programme which focuses on audience development and promoting different types of UK music in Vietnam. For those who do not understand much about opera, ‘The Little Sweep’ by Benjamin Britten is a good starting point, being suitable for a variety of different audiences”.
‘This Britten’s miniature operatic masterpiece was completed in 1949 and has been very popular, particularly with younger audiences ever since,” he added
Benjamin Britten was born in Lowertoft, Suffolk, UK in 1913. He is considered one of the most talented composers of his generation and produced a number of famous works including The Rape of Lucretia (1946), Albert Herring (1947), Billy Budd (1951), Gloriana (1953), The Turn of the Screw (1954), Noye’s Fludde (1957), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1960), Owen Wingrave (1970-1971), and Death in Venice (1971-1973).
The opera is in Vietnamese with English subtitles with composer Duong Thu as Vietnamese libretto and People’s Artist Pham Anh Phuong as artistic director
Free tickets to the performances are available from January 26 at the British Council (No.20 Thuy Khue street) and the Vietnam National Opera Ballet (No. 11 Nui Truc street).
KTDT