Trinity Laban to stage Musgrave's A Christmas Carol

This International Women’s Day, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance announced that they will be staging a new production of Thea Musgrave’s 1979 opera A Christmas Carol as part of their new season focus Venus Blazing.
Venus Blazing is an unprecedented commitment by the conservatoire to the music of women composers throughout the next academic year, ensuring that at least half of the music it chooses for its public performances will be by women composers. This year they have chosen to highlight the work of Thea Musgrave, one of the most prolific women composers of opera – with eleven titles to her name. 
A Christmas Carol closely follows Charles Dickens’ beloved novel and will be given its second ever UK performance by the opera and vocal students of the conservatoire. It will take place in early December; more details will be announced later in the year. This announcement follows the performance of two concerts earlier this month by the Trinity Laban Chamber Choir, dedicated to the composer’s choral music in celebration of her ninetieth birthday.

Announcing Venus Blazing last week, Harriet Harman, Chair of Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, said:

'Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance is strongly committed to diversity in all elements and it has a mission to constantly challenge the status quo. Venus Blazing is a great example of just how it can do this.
This celebration will encourage and inspire its students – many of whom will go on to shape the future of the performing arts - to engage with the historic issue of gender imbalance in music by women, and ensure that it does not continue into the next generation.

I welcome this bold initiative to raise awareness of the disparity that has long existed in music and shine a light on music that has so frequently been overlooked. I am also greatly looking forward to hearing some of the musical treasures by women I might not otherwise have had the chance to hear in performance.’



More information on Venus Blazing can be found here.

Follow all the events marking #Musgrave90 by visiting theamusgrave.com and follow @WMClassical/wisemusicclassical on Twitter and Instagram.