Opera is given a street makeover at a forthcoming production at a Hackney church next month.
Celebrated opera La Boheme is dragged in to the 21st century from its historical setting in 19th century Paris at St-John-at-Hackney church in Lower Clapton Road, Clapton.
In this modern retelling of the Puccini masterpiece, a group of university students celebrate their newfound freedom by exploring everything that their world has to offer such as alcohol, drugs, love and sex.
They discover the joy and pain of love, the bittersweetness of mortality and the painful nature of secrets – human realities that transpose time and place.
Emily Kolltveit, venue manager for St-John-at-Hackney, said: “This is a really amazing show. It’s a version of La Boheme which heavily echoes the social problems faced in Hackney such as street crime, drugs and disenchanted youngsters.”
The production is being staged by the New London Opera Players, an organisation which seeks to take classical opera on a reduced scale, produced and sung in English, all over Britain to audiences and schools who otherwise have no chance of hearing opera live.
La Boheme will be performed on September 13. Tickets cost £17 and can be obtained by calling th ebox office on 020 8985 5374 ext: 222.
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