The contemporary story of five unlucky-in-love New Zealanders living in the fictitious rural town of Cloverton is being paired with Henry Purcell's 17th century music for a new kind of opera experience...
New, but based on a very old one. Mixing spoken drama with operatic music was all the rage at the time of Charles II and the English Restoration, though it became known - not always flatteringly - as a "semi opera".
Wellington-based group The Queen's Closet likes to mix things up. The musicians play as authentic as possible 17th century period instruments. But for this show, Cloverton: In Love & In Wine, they commissioned writer Dave Armstrong to come up with a modern libretto that actors will perform on stage.
Lynn Freeman spoke to the ensemble's co-founders - manager and producer, Sharon Lehany and artistic and musical director Gordon Lehany.
The Queen's Closet's Cloverton: In Love & In Wine premieres on Friday, 25 November, at Te Auaha in Te Whānganui-a-Tara/Wellington.
