The Soldier's Tale
A darkly humorous musical storytelling performance combining dance, theatre and International Festival resident artist Nicola Benedetti’s superb violin playing.
A Faustian pact with the Devil, a book that can foretell the future – and behind it all, a charmed violin with uncanny powers over all who hear it.
Nicola Benedetti’s final performance as the International Festival’s 2021 resident artist presents Stravinsky’s darkly witty The Soldier’s Tale. Conceived during the Spanish flu pandemic that immediately followed the First World War, it’s a unique mix of theatre, dance and music, originally created on an intimate scale for a travelling outdoor theatre – and never more relevant than in our own times of social distancing, open-air venues and heightened safety.
The brilliant Scottish violinist is joined by a specially selected ensemble of musicians to bring Stravinsky’s sly musical storytelling to life.
Performed in English with English supertitles
Stravinsky’s 1918 music-drama has never been more topicaliNews
Supported by Geoff and Mary Ball
Nicola Benedetti Violin
Nicholas Bayley Double bass
Maximiliano MartínClarinet
Ursula Leveaux Bassoon
Philip Cobb Cornet
Peter Moore Trombone
Louise Godwin Percussion
Sir Thomas Allen Narrator
Anthony Flaum Soldier
Siobhan Redmond Devil
Stravinsky The Soldier’s Tale
Performed in English with supertitles