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SURF works with the cast of Santé, a new opera
London – 9th May 2006
Santé – A Story from Rwanda
Date: Sunday, 21st May 2006
Time: 7.00pm
Place: LSO St Lukes, 161 Old Street, London EC1V 9NG
Tickets: £15, £10
Box office: 08703 800 400 / www.rfh.org.uk
Info: www.londonsinfonietta.org.uk
Survivors Fund has been working with the production team and cast of a new opera, set against the outbreak of the Rwandan genocide. Young composer Emily Hall's Santé is a story of love, betrayal and death in the Rwandan Spring of 1994.
A vision comes to Santé in a dream. Its true significance, her story and the tragic fate which befalls her lover Obietu is set against the background of the 100-day genocide in which 1 million Tutsis and many moderate Hutus were killed.
“A drop of blood. Red, like the petals in my dream. There was this strange wind. The tree was on fire. Then the petals fell.”
The 77 minute character-based opera is directed by Tim Supple, who comments:
“The story is not about genocide, but about human relationships within the framework of genocide. It reminds me of Lorca. We start with a female character who yearns for something more than what's available in the claustrophobic culture of the small village; familial jealousies are there – a breeding ground for personal vendettas, in this case given some spurious validation by the sponsored genocide.”
Music: Emily Hall
Director: Tim Supple
Libretto: Kit Peel
Music director: Philip Walsh
Cast: Yannick-Muriel Noah, Joey Masemola, Rodney Clarke, Robin Pietà, Osita Okereafor, Sani Muliaumaseali'I, Juwon Ogungbe
Ensemble: London Sinfonietta
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