L'Enfant et les Sortileges: an Opéra-Dansé by Colette and Ravel

This summer, find your inner child.  

Intrigued by the thought of a fantasy opera-dance in which a teapot and a cup foxtrot and sing ragtime, and two cats sing a duet in authentic cat language?  Where things are not always as they seem, and the world of the shadows and reality collide in a magical, imaginative space beyond the ordinary.   

L’Enfant et les Sortilèges is a one-act opera-dance, with music by Ravel set to a libretto by the French novelist Colette. It contains all the classic elements of fairytale: the inanimate springing to life, then fear and danger which are finally dissipated by love. A little boy, shut in his room by his mother, wreaks his fury on his furniture only for it, along with the plants and animals of the garden, to terrifyingly come to life to object.   Poulenc’s La courte paille (a set of seven songs originally written for voice and piano) serves as a prelude to L’Enfant, setting the scene for the opera through a series of moments before the main story takes over.

Trinity Laban vocal students and instrumentalists collaborate with final year contemporary dancers on the staging of this magical, mesmerising production.   

Directed by Ruth Mariner, known for her inventive and immersive theatrical productions, with Musical Direction by Dr. Leo Geyer fresh from touring his award-winning Lost Music of Auschwitz and choreography by Trinity Laban’s Will Aitchison, this promises to be a highlight of our summer performance season.   

This production is double cast.

Red Cast – performances Thurs 2 July 19:30 and Sat 4 July 15:00

L’Enfant The Child  Izzy McNally
Maman Mama Anna Yule
Le Fauteuil The Armchair Dongheon Jang^+
La Bergère The Basketweave Armchair Liberty Anstead
L’Horloge Comtoise The Broken Clock Hope Heaven+
La Théière The Teapot Charles Su+
La Tasse Chinoise The Teacup Jenny Gao
Le Feu The Fire Ava Reineke+
La Princesse The Princess Emily Williams
Une Pastourelle A Shepherdess Gwennan Wright+ (2 July) │ Isabelle Adams+ (4 July)
Un Pâtre A Shepherd Olivia Shatwell*
Le Petit Vieillard The Little Old Man Harry Reddish
Le Chat The Cat Tom Doyle
La Chatte The Cat Clare Campbell
La Chouette The Owl Lily-Rose Brookes^
L’Arbre The Tree Sam Tang
La Libellule The Dragonfly Clare Galwey
Le Rossignol The Nightingale Mahtab Ghamsari
La Chauve-Souris The Bat Dorothy Whyte-Venables
L’écureuil The Squirrel Ilona Nastase
La Rainette The Tree Frog Joel Fernandez^

*Also in Number Chorus
^Also in Pastoral Chorus
+Also in Nature Chorus

Chorus
Holly Eldridge | Xanthe Tuffin | Izzie Wilcox | Sophia Eldred | Lottie Moulton | Eva Hutchins | Evie Thompson-Ford | Catherine Hobday | Grace Powell | Grace Bryant David Swaby-Thomas | Yan Sze Tan | Joey Pugh  | Cameron Galvin (2 July only) | David Balica | Tanay Shah | Maya Valecha | Tom Harrison

Dancers
Bobbi Walker | Carol Huang | Chelsea Greenfield | Edward Pepper | Elizabete Bele | Eva Garnett | Flore Seytre | Grace Delstanche |  Izzy Smith | Maisie Young | Molly Grainger | Molly Sharp | Celia Cheung | Valentina Loertscher | Sheldon Ridge

Blue Cast – performances Fri 3 July 19:30 and Sat 4 July 19:30

L’Enfant The Child Charlotte Killingley
Maman Mama Imogen Woodhead
Le Fauteuil The Armchair Sam Tang+
La Bergère The Basketweave Armchair Maya Valecha+
L’Horloge Comtoise The Broken Clock Tom Harrison+
La Théière The Teapot Hamish Garland+
La Tasse Chinoise The Teacup Olivia Shatwell*+
Le Feu The Fire Alisa Mansurova+
La Princesse The Princess Kristiana Butina
Une Pastourelle A Shepherdess Gwennan Wright+ (3 July) │ Isabelle Adams+ (4 July)
Un Pâtre A Shepherd Lottie Moulton*+
Le Petit Vieillard The Little Old Man Harry Reddish
Le Chat The Cat Zac Conibear
La Chatte The Cat Lucy John
La Chouette The Owl Grace Powell+
L’Arbre The Tree David Balica^+
La Libellule The Dragonfly Grace Wallace
Le Rossignol The Nightingale Nollie Odoom
La Chauve-Souris The Bat Lily-Rose Brookes^+
L’écureuil The Squirrel Hannah Murray
La Rainette The Tree Frog Joey Pugh^

*Also in Number Chorus
^Also in Pastoral Chorus
+Also in Nature Chorus

Chorus
Holly Eldridge | Xanthe Tuffin | Izzie Wilcox | Sophia Eldred | Eva Hutchins | Evie Thompson-Ford | Catherine Hobday | Grace Bryant |  David Swaby-Thomas | Yan Sze Tan | Joel Fernandez | Cameron Galvin (3 July only) |  Dongheon Jang |  Tanay Shah | Hope Heaven

Dancers
Bobbi Walker | Carol Huang | Chelsea Greenfield | Edward Pepper | Elizabete Bele | Eva Garnett | Flore Seytre | Grace Delstanche | Izzy Smith | Maisie Young | Molly Grainger | Molly Sharp | Celia Cheung |  Valentina Loertscher |  Sheldon Ridge