Handel's Xerxes
Handel’s Xerxes (Serse), while based on a historical King from Ancient Persia, is a fiction that blends romance, comedy, and intrigue. The impulsive King Xerxes abandons his fiancée, Amastris, and pursues Romilda, despite her love for his brother Arsamenes. A whirlwind of mistaken identities, intercepted letters, jealous schemes, and unexpected twists ensue before love and loyalty prevail.
Combining moments of genuine emotional depth with sharp irony and a fast-developing plot, Xerxes is replete with expressive arias and vivid recitatives, represented here in our edited (shortened) version that draws on Nicholas Hyntner’s English language translation (published, 1987).
The project is a collaboration between the opera program, the early music studio and the area of stage production at the Faculty of Fine Arts and Music. We shift the story’s context to the first part of the twentieth century. At that time, in elite circles, boundaries between art and life were interrogated, and gender was experimented with in ways that reflect the earlier baroque traditions of male and female singers playing differing genders. Inspired by the real King Xerxes’ love of technological innovation and aesthetics, we draw on ideas from La Belle Époque that influenced Persian royal and intellectual life and European culture more broadly.
- Jane Davidson
Director
CAST BY PERFORMANCE
FULL CAST
Xerxes
Brittney Northcott
Romilda
Lily Flynn / Emilia Gray / Kate Pengelly
Amastris
Mia Kousoumidis
Arsamenes
Emma Mueller / Martyn Arends / Matthew O'Leary
Atalanta
Zoe Lancaster / Phoebe Tait
Elviro
Leyland Jones
Ariodates
Zhuoyang (Sunny) Li
Xerxes (Cover)
Tessa McKenna
Amastris (Cover)
Olive Cullen
Featured Chorus
Eleni Habibis (Companion to Amastris), Alice Dagwell, Annabel Nelson, Leah Stange (Dancers)
Chorus
Hugh Campbell, Nicholas Corcoran, Yujia Du, Sandy Humphreys, Harriet Johnston, Jasper Kirkwood, Victoria Kokkinos, Isla Martin, Jacqueline Pizzo, Ruby Streit
Repetiteurs
Jacob Abela
Shauna Beesley
Stephen Grant
CREATIVE TEAM
Director
Jane Davidson
Music Director
Donald Nicolson
Set Designer
Lochlan Maher*
Costume Designer
Megan Black*
Lighting Designer
Hugo Iser-Smith*
PRODUCTION TEAM
Production Stage Manager
Estella Koce*
Deputy Stage Manager
Cass Ward*
Assistant Stage Manager / Orchestra Manager
Sophie Sykes*
Workshop Head of Department (Scenic)
Yolanda Box*
Senior Costumiers
Baden Day* and Alicia Price*
Head Electrician & Lighting Programmer
Lily Mae Harrison*
*Third year Bachelor of Fine Arts (Production) student
ORCHESTRA
Performed on period instruments
Violin I (concertmaster)
Wil Golja
Violin II
Kieron Fenner
Viola
Lilla Cleminson
Cello
Sebastian Spillane
Bass
Theodore Pham
Traverso/Piccolo
Harrison Whelan
Recorders
Hugo Davey
Oboe
Will Hanley
Bassoon
Joshua Elrom
Harpsichord
Justice Karol
Theorbo
Koosha Ahmadi
Harpsichord and Organ
Donald Nicolson
PROFESSIONAL STAFF
Artistic Operations & Planning Manager
Abe Watson
Producer
Ang Cuy
Production Manager
Andy Turner
Stagecraft Project Coordinator
Alan (Alby) Logan
Set & Props Construction
Philip De Mulder, Charlie Craft, Imported Theatre Fabrics (ITF)
Scenic Artist
Siobhan Briggs
Costume Supervisor
Sophie Woodward
Orchestra Coordinator
Caitlin Hopwood
Surtitle Operator
Claudia Howarth
ACADEMIC STAFF
Head of Opera
Jane Davidson
Head of Design & Production
Anna Cordingley
Design & Production Subject Coordinator
Matt Scott
Design & Production Academic Consultants
Rain Iyahen and Jen Langford
Vocal Teachers
Linda Barcan, Carrie Barr, Anna Connolly, Heather Fletcher, Stephen Grant, Antoinette Halloran, Jocelyn Hickey, Roxane Hislop, Suzanne Johnston, Victoria Lambourn, Dermot Tutty
Design & Production Academic Staff
Anna Cordingley, Kris Bird, Jo Briscoe, Dr Peter Burke, Dr Danny Butt, Marco Cher-Gibard, Dr Emily Collett, Martyn Coutts, Narelle Desmond, Ela Egidy, Jo Evans, Dale Ferguson, John Ford, Nell Hanson, Amanda Hitten, Anna Hoyle, Lisa Mibus, Amanda Morgan, Lisa Osborn, Richard Roberts, Leon Salom, Marion Schaberl, Matt Scott, David Shea, Christina Smith, Darren Wardle, John Warwicker-Le Breton and Jethro Woodward
We thank the Conservatorium Voice staff and Classical Voice students for their support and involvement in this production.