FULL THE PRISONER (Will Gardner) London 2024 Michael Temporal Darell, Emma Warner, William Gardner, Abbie Ward
Information on the Performance
- Work Title: The Prisoner
- Composer: Gardner Will
- Libretto: Matthew Green Libretto Text, Libretto Index
- Venue & Opera Company: The Britten Theatre, Royal College of Music, London, UK
- Recorded: August 24, 2024
- Type: Staged Opera Live
- Singers: Michael Temporal Darell, Emma Warner, William Gardner, Abbie Ward
- Conductor: Alexander Papp
- Orchestra:
- Stage Director: Eleanor Burke
- Costume Designer:
Information about the Recording
- Published by: Tête à Tête
- Date Published: 2024
- Format: Streaming
- Quality Video: 4 Audio:4
- Subtitles: nosubs
- Video Recording from: Vimeo FULL VIDEO
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THIS PERFORMANCE
Synopsis
In an isolated cell, The Prisoner awaits his execution, watched
by The Guard. The Lawyer arrives and is convinced she can
commute his sentence to life imprisonment, if he asks the
judge for mercy. He would rather die, he tells her.
The Guard introduces The Priest who has come to save The
Prisoner’s soul. The Prisoner tells the Priest he doesn’t want
to be saved as he doesn’t believe in God and claims that the
next life will be as futile as this one. The Priest grapples with
his faith as he feels The Prisoner is beyond redemption.
The Lawyer reappears. The appeal has failed and The Prisoner
is to be executed the next day. The Priest argues that The
Prisoner’s fate would still be just even if he had repented. But
The Lawyer disagrees, viewing capital punishment as even
worse than The Prisoner’s crimes. The Priest cannot reconcile
himself to the Christian doctrine that belief must always bring
a man as evil as the Prisoner everlasting life. The Priest and the
Lawyer admit that they have lost faith in their respective belief
systems. Together, they lament.
On the morning of the execution, The Guard observes how
she has complete control over the prison and its inmates. The
Prisoner wakes and contemplates the futility of his existence.
The Prisoner is executed. The Lawyer, Priest and Guard say a
prayer together. The Priest feels guilty for wishing the Prisoner
dead and damned, questioning the man he has become.
PROGRAM LEAFLET