November 9, 2020
Summer of the Seventeenth Doll Program
Summer of the Seventeenth Doll Read the online version of the program from Summer of the Seventeenth Doll
Summer of the Seventeenth Doll
“There’s A Time For Sowing And There’s A Time For Reaping.”Her Majesty's Theatre
14 Nov - 20 Nov 2020The opera was commissioned by the Victoria State Opera and premiered in 1996. Opera Australia subsequently presented the work in 1999.
CANCELLED PERFORMANCES
In light of the COVID-19 restrictions for South Australia that come into effect at midnight 16 November 2020, State Opera wishes to advise that the performances of Summer of the Seventeenth Doll on 18 & 20 November are cancelled.
State Opera is in regular consultation with SA Government and key stakeholders in regards to COVID-19.
Safety of our patrons and artists remains paramount.
Any further changes to the scheduled performances for State Opera in 2020 will be made as far in advance as possible. We appreciate your continued patience and support during this time.
Based on Ray Lawler’s 1955 Australian play of the same name, this chamber opera tells the story of a long-standing tradition at the end of the sugarcane season, in which cane-cutters Barney and Roo travel south to Melbourne for their annual fling with two city girls. But this year, the seventeenth year, is different. Gone are the larrikin summers of their youth. Instead, their reunion is full of tension, silence, and awkward attempts to hold onto their past. One girl has married; all of them struggle to come to terms with what their futures hold.
Lawler’s play is considered to be the most significant in Australian playwriting, marking the first time the authentic Australian voice was depicted on stage. So too does Mills and Goldsworthy’s opera express, at its heart, something heroic, fragile, and utterly moving.
REVIEWS
- Conductor
- Richard Mills AM
- Director
- Joseph Mitchell
- Designer
- Simone Romaniuk
- Lighting
- Trudy Dalgleish
- Olive
- Antoinette Halloran
- Pearl
- Dimity Shepherd
- Emma
- Elizabeth Campbell
- Roo
- Joshua Rowe
- Barney
- Bradley Daley
- Bubba
- Desiree Frahn
- Johnny Dowd
- Nicholas Cannon
Adelaide Symphony Orchestra
READ
November 9, 2020
From Theatre to Opera
Widely recognised as Australia’s most well-known and loved play, Ray Lawler’s Summer of the 17th Doll is quintessential Australian theatre. The Mills/Goldsworthy opera adaptation successfully…
November 1, 2020
Designing the Set for Summer of the Seventeenth Doll
There is a significant history to Summer of the Seventeenth Doll, both in the memories of an Australian audience, but also in the story and…
October 26, 2020
From a play to Libretto
Our lives begin as opera. Our first memories, the indelible memories of early childhood, are operatic: overblown, deeply resonant, larger than life. Infancy is a…
October 23, 2020
Writing for my Fellow Australians
Opera is a complex metaphor for life — not realistic but in that unrealistic frame essentially more real than real because of its capacity to…
September 2, 2020
Summer of the Seventeenth – The Draft
At my first meeting with Richard Mills, he told me the story of the diva, Montserrat Caballe, amply proportioned, who was asked to sing while…
July 31, 2020
Why Summer of the Seventeenth Doll?
Artistic Director of State Opera, Stuart Maunder speaks about why he chose to include Summer of the Seventeenth Doll in State Opera's 2020 season.State Opera…
SOCIAL
Oh my, opening night is exactly a month away! 😳
And in case you haven't heard, new seats have been recently released and are up for grabs across all performances.
Get yours here: stateopera.com.au/productions/candide/
📸 Annie Aitken in the 2018 performance of Candide directed by Mitchell Butel with the Sydney Philharmonia Choir. Photo by Grant Leslie
0 CommentsComment on Facebook
Happy Earth Day 🌏
Don't forget to reduce, reuse and recycle like our friends from The Frog Prince!
📸 Andrew Beveridge
0 CommentsComment on Facebook
If you are interested in booking yourself for one of our afternoon recitals at UKARIA Cultural Centre, hurry! Almost half of the tickets are already gone.
Pick your favourite or secure all three with a discounted package: stateopera.com.au/2024-recital-series/
0 CommentsComment on Facebook
SHOWS YOU MAY LIKE
© 2024 State Opera South Australia. Designed & developed by Avenue De Saxe