Stuart Jackson

Sacred music meets the theatricality of opera in Handel's oratorio Messiah, here conducted by Laurence Equilbey and performed by the Insula Orchestra, Polish artist Jakub Józef Orliński and the Chœurs accentus at the Aix-en-Provence Easter Festival.

When a spirited peasant girl is promised to a stranger, she uses every last ounce of cunning and charm to thwart her parents’ plans and get the man she actually loves. From the vibrant overture to the riotous polka, Smetana places dance at the heart of his sparkling work. This festive celebration of Czech culture and identity is re-imagined into the heart of the English countryside with this new production at Garsington Opera.