Final casting is announced for the King’s Head Theatre’s radical reimagining of La Traviata, Verdi’s incendiary tale of sex, class and power in a new English version by Becca Marriott and Helena Jackson.
England, 2018. Violetta earns her crust as a pole dancer dancing for the rich and powerful at an exclusive gentleman’s club until a chance meeting with naive and idealistic Elijah changes everything. The powerful collide with the powerless, with earth-shattering consequences for all involved.
Becca Marriott said: “Making Violetta a pole dancer – torn between her romantic fantasy of love and her love of freedom allows us to explore society’s double standards. Double standards that ultimately lead to Violetta’s death. Of course, it also means teaching opera singers, happy skipping through reams of coloratura and emitting notes that could shatter glass, to tackle ‘the pole.’ Not just a dance-form, but a true challenge of physical fitness, stamina and body confidence, learning to pole dance has been rewarding and terrifying in equal measure.”
The cast are:
Emma Walsh – Violetta, Becca Marriott – Violetta, Alex Haigh – Elijah, Oliver Brignall – Elijah, Gráinne Gillis – Flora, Gemma Morsley – Flora, Michael Georgiou – Germont, Victor Sgarbi – Germont, with Elspeth Wilkes as the musician.
The production will also be directed by Helena Jackson, who recently graduated from the King’s Head Theatre’s award-winning Trainee Resident Director’s scheme with several members of the creative team behind La bohème (nominated for the Olivier Award for Best New Opera Production) and Tosca (winner the Off West Award for Best Opera production) returning to work on this production.
La Traviata is at the King’s Head Theatre 27th September to 27th October 2018.
