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Acis & Galatea – a charming summer romp from Benson Choral Society
Handel’s gem of a mini-opera or masque, Acis and Galatea, is a simple tale of Acis, a shepherd, and Galatea, a sea nymph, whose happy romance is broken by the jealous monster Polyphemus who kills Acis, but Galatea uses her magical powers to turn Acis into a fountain in whose waters she can bathe forever. The story is derived from Ovid’s Metamorphoses and it has a fine libretto by John Gay and Alexander Pope. After a successful première in 1718 it was revived in the 1730s and was Handel’s most popular stage work in his lifetime.
There are many memorable moments, which include Polyphemus’ great aria ‘O ruddier than the cherry’. Handel was to follow popular middle-class taste in their preference for oratorios, culminating in his great Messiah but it’s good to hear his music in other genres.
To realise this lovely work, we have as soloists Anastasia Bevan, Dominic Bevan, (both from the celebrated Bevan family) William Searle (well-known Welsh tenor) and Ben Davies (who has sung with the Sixteen) and as our authentic baroque orchestra a return of the Instruments of Time and Truth, all under the watchful baton of Tom Neal. This will be at 7.30pm on Saturday 20 June in Dorchester Abbey. Tickets @£20 reserved or £17 unreserved can be booked on our website http://www.bensonchoralsociety.org.uk Book now, first come, first served!
