ABELARD & HELOISE

Music:

Ross Fiddes

Lyrics:

Paul Kavanagh

Book:

Paul Kavanagh
Dramaturgy by Matthew Lazarus-Hall

Original Direction:

Crhistiane O'Sullivan (Director)

Ross Fiddes (Musical Director)

Cast Size:

3M, 4F, Ensemble: 25-35 (Mixed)

Music Requirements:

Chamber Orchestra  (Can be performed with Piano + Percussion, OR 8 Piece ensemble version can be arranged)

Ideal For:

- Community Theatres
- Concerts
- Festivals

- Large-scale Productions

- Medium-Scale Productions
- Regional Theatres

Synopsis:

An epic new musical drama based on a true mediaeval love story to equal Romeo & Juliet. A famous teacher-philosopher and his much younger pupil fall in love contrary to the mores of the Church and their station, creating a cauldron of passion, eroticism, jealousy, hate, separation and tragedy.

The true 12th century love story of Abelard and Heloise has been adapted by Fiddes and Kavanagh as a musical drama from letters of the lovers and a revealing autobiography by Abelard. They have been assisted by director/dramaturg Matthew Lazarus-Hall.

The story of Abelard and Heloise has all the dramatic seductiveness of Romeo and Juliet. Its themes of love, abandonment and separation, unrequited passion, morality, and the power of the medieval church have fascinated people for centuries. In modern times it has been the subject of at least 2 major TV documentaries, a feature film, a stage play (with Diana Rigg as Heloise), a musical with dialogue called Rage of the Heart (a quite different treatment of the subject), and many learned papers and books.

The Fiddes/Kavanagh creation has a number of key elements - truly poetic lyrics, even when the moment is humorous or bawdy; music which is consistently melodic and reflects the words and story in a most powerful way; and a broad sweep of emotion and spectacle to lift an audience out of the everyday and transport them in the joy and then the despair and tragedy of the lovers. Whilst the work has been devised in the form of a musical, there has been an intentional use of many operatic devices to achieve this aim.
 

For a detailed synopsis please visit:  www.fiddeslaw.com.au/ah/synopsis.htm

Credentials:

2003 - Showcased in OzMade Musicals

Premiere:

10/10/2002, Christchurch Cathedral, Newcastle, NSW

Significant Performances:

Selected Quotes:

Performance Availability:

Available

Contact:

abelardandheloise @ australianmusicals.com

Other:

Recordings: 
 

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