FULL The Three Wayfarers’ (John Whittaker) Abingdon 2015 Opera Anywhere

Information on the Performance

• Work Title: The Three Wayfarers'  
• Composer: Whittaker John   
• Libretto: based on the story (and the play adaptation) by Thomas Hardy    Libretto Text, Libretto Index
• Venue & Opera Company: Unicorn Theatre, Abingdon, England, Opera Anywhere  
• Recorded: February 2015
• Type: Staged Opera Live
• Singers: Vanessa Woodwar, Rachel Dreese, Mike Woodward, Christ Gill, Caroline Clarke, Darren Clarke, Helen May, Mark Horner, Jake Robson, Oskar McCarthy, Raphael Conte, David Hansford
• Conductor: Nick Planas  
• Orchestra: The Three Wayfarers Orchestra  
• Stage Director: Paula Chitty  
• Costume Designer:   

Information about the Recording

• Published by: John Whittaker  
• Date Published: 2023  
• Format: Streaming
• Quality Video: 4 Audio:4
• Subtitles: yessubs, ensubs, gensubs  
• Video Recording from: YouTube     FULL VIDEO
•  

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON THIS PERFORMANCE

The Three Wayfarers’ – Is a one-act chamber opera by John Whittaker. It is based on the play of the same name by Thomas Hardy. (Duration approx. 50 minutes) 12-14 Singers. Scored for Flute, 2 Clarinets, Bassoon, String Quintet and Double-Bass. The piece is intended to be a fusion of folk-music and operatic music – for trained singers who can deliver a style of singing sympathetic to folk-song. It contains one short folk-song and some traditional dance tunes from Hardy’s own tune book. It is similar to the musical sound-world established by Vaughan Williams in ‘Hugh The Drover’. The libretto devised by the composer is based on the play script, but also utilising aspects of the original story by Thomas Hardy. ‘The Three Wayfarers’ was first performed by Opera Anywhere (www.operaanywhere.com ) in February 2015 (director: Paula Chitty) in a workshop performance at the Unicorn Theatre, Abingdon. Unfortunately funding was not forthcoming for the opera to have further more polished performances, but the video of the workshop performance is available to those interested in this contemporary operatic Hardy adaptation.