FULL 1944: HOME FIRES (Robert Ely) London 2023 Alfred Mitchell, Kieran Rayner, Olivia Bell, Anthony Stuart Lloyd

Information on the Performance

• Work Title: 1944: HOME FIRES   
• Composer: Ely Robert   
• Libretto: Peter Scott-Presland    Libretto Text, Libretto Index
• Venue & Opera Company: The Cockpit, London, UK  
• Recorded: September 3, 2023
• Type: Staged Opera Live
• Singers: Alfred Mitchell, Kieran Rayner, Olivia Bell, Anthony Stuart Lloyd
• Conductor: Joe Tobin   
• Orchestra: Instrumental Ensemble  
• Stage Director: Emily Beech  
• Costume Designer:   
• Lighting Designer: Liana Gibbs  

Information about the Recording

• Published by: Tête à Tête, MyNewOpera  
• Date Published: 2024  
• Format: Streaming
• Quality Video: 4 Audio:4
• Subtitles: yessubs, ensubs, gensubs  
• Video Recording from: YouTube     FULL VIDEO
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THIS PERFORMANCE

The idol and the thug: well-known Queer Ivor Novello was the most successful composer and matinee idol of the 30s and 40s. In 1944 he was banged up in Wormwood Scrubs for fiddling his petrol coupons. He shared a cell with a homophobe: 20-year-old ‘Mad’ Frankie Fraser, the terror of South London gangland. What could possibly go wrong?

This almost-true story explores class war, electric shock treatment, the nature of masculinity – and how to rebuild a life you think is in ruins.