The National Arts Festival and Nebula Productions are delighted to announce the screening of the Royal Opera House production of Tchaikovsky’s THE QUEEN OF SPADES. Containing some of the composer’s greatest music, this opera is a study of destructive obsession.
Taking place on Friday 1 March at 6pm at Olive Schreiner Hall in the Monument, this screening of the stage production offers audiences the best seats in the house, and includes exclusive, behind-the-scenes footage, interviews and detailed close-ups of performers. The film is approximately three hours long – including a 20-minute interval and will be sung in Russian with English subtitles.
The Queen of Spades tells the story of Gherman (Aleksandrs Antonenko), a penniless soldier obsessed by both gambling and the beautiful Liza (Eva-Maria Westbroek). After Gherman tries to discover a winning card trick from Liza’s grandmother the Countess (Felicity Palmer), and she dies of fright, his obsession turns into madness. Stefan Herheim’s inventive production places Tchaikovsky himself at the heart of the action. The Queen of Spades features some of Tchaikovsky’s most beautiful music, with grand choruses, intimate arias and impassioned duets. Antonio Pappano conducts.
Also look out for these screenings: La Traviata, La Forza del Destino, and Faust (from the Royal Opera House), Don Quixote, Golden Hour, and Romeo & Juliet (from the Royal Ballet Company) and Measure for Measure, As You Like It, Taming of the Shrew, Anthony and Cleopatra, and Macbeth (from the Royal Shakespeare Company).
Tickets are R75 with concession tickets available at R65 and will be available from 5.30pm at the door. Members of the Monument Movie Club get R10 discount on these prices. To book tickets in advance, contact Kate on 046 603 1163 or email movies@nationalartsfestival.co.za.
