On the first day back at school one September, a boy called Pierre walks out of the class, climbs a plum tree, and declares that ‘nothing matters’. His classmates try without success to bring him down from the tree. Desperate to prove him wrong, they give up their childhood possessions to a bonfire, "a Pile of Meaning", so their tears will prove things matter.
When this makes no impression on Pierre, they decide to force one another to give up whatever is most important to each of them. This starts with toys and clothes, but soon escalates monstrously: one girl’s hair – the national flag – the corpse of a pet – a figure of Jesus – until finally, with Pierre still claiming life is pointless – the children give up body and soul in a terrible spiral of sacrifice.
Finally Pierre comes to see the ‘Pile of Meaning’. He climbs it, crying out that life is beautiful – because it means nothing. In rage and regret the children set upon him. He is never seen again. Years later at Christmas, the children, now adults from all walks of life, gather by the plum tree to hang purple baubles on its branches, in recognition that whatever it was they went through together, the life and death of Pierre meant something, and cannot be forgotten.
Nothing is a story of lost childhood, the getting of wisdom, and the madness of crowds. The children are forced to confront the darkest answer to the question of existence, yet somehow find love and humanity in their responses. They absorb the horror of this communal experience, and move on through life, sadder and wiser, ever searching for truth and meaning.
InstrumentationEdit
The opera is scored for the following orchestra:[1]
The reviews for the opening production of Nothing were overwhelmingly positive. In a five star review, The Independent called the piece "a pretty well flawless piece which, unlike almost all other recent operas about adolescent alienation, rings true to life."[2] Rupert Christiansen in The Telegraph said "The audience was held rapt by a performance that by any standards exerted a chilling power and intensity."[3] Mark Pullinger of BachTrack.com said "Nothing is the most powerful contemporary opera I’ve seen since Written on Skin, which is high praise indeed."[4]
Future productionsEdit
This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(November 2018)
^"'Nothing' is an unforgettable youth opera acted with blazing conviction - review". Independent.co.uk. 29 February 2016. Archived from the original on 21 June 2022.
^Christiansen, Rupert (27 February 2016). "Nothing, Glyndebourne, review: 'a chilling power and intensity'". The Telegraph.
^"The value of Nothing: A dark thriller at Glyndebourne".
nothing, opera, nothing, opera, british, composer, david, bruce, libretto, glyn, maxwell, based, award, winning, novel, same, name, janne, teller, opera, commissioned, royal, opera, house, london, glyndebourne, original, production, directed, bijan, sheibani, . Nothing is a two act opera by the British composer David Bruce to a libretto by Glyn Maxwell based on the award winning novel of the same name by Janne Teller The opera was co commissioned by the Royal Opera House London and Glyndebourne The original production directed by Bijan Sheibani premiered at Glyndebourne in February 2016 featuring Glyndebourne Youth Opera and Southbank Sinfonia The performances were conducted by Sian Edwards Contents 1 Roles 2 Synopsis 3 Instrumentation 3 1 Woodwinds 3 2 Brass 3 3 Percussion 4 players 3 4 Harps and keyboards 3 5 Strings 4 Critical response 5 Future productions 6 ReferencesRoles EditThe opera has five principal roles and three smaller roles that are performed by members of the chorus The chorus itself is written for young voices Role Voice type Premiere cast 25 February 2016 conductor Sian Edwards Pierre tenor Stuart JacksonAgnes soprano Robyn Allegra PartonUrsula mezzo soprano Marta Fontanals SimmonsJohan counter tenor James HallKarl bass baritone Tristan HambletonChorus of fellow classmatesSynopsis EditOn the first day back at school one September a boy called Pierre walks out of the class climbs a plum tree and declares that nothing matters His classmates try without success to bring him down from the tree Desperate to prove him wrong they give up their childhood possessions to a bonfire a Pile of Meaning so their tears will prove things matter When this makes no impression on Pierre they decide to force one another to give up whatever is most important to each of them This starts with toys and clothes but soon escalates monstrously one girl s hair the national flag the corpse of a pet a figure of Jesus until finally with Pierre still claiming life is pointless the children give up body and soul in a terrible spiral of sacrifice Finally Pierre comes to see the Pile of Meaning He climbs it crying out that life is beautiful because it means nothing In rage and regret the children set upon him He is never seen again Years later at Christmas the children now adults from all walks of life gather by the plum tree to hang purple baubles on its branches in recognition that whatever it was they went through together the life and death of Pierre meant something and cannot be forgotten Nothing is a story of lost childhood the getting of wisdom and the madness of crowds The children are forced to confront the darkest answer to the question of existence yet somehow find love and humanity in their responses They absorb the horror of this communal experience and move on through life sadder and wiser ever searching for truth and meaning Instrumentation EditThe opera is scored for the following orchestra 1 Woodwinds Edit 3 Flutes 2nd doubling Piccolo 3 Oboes 2nd doubling English Horn 3 Clarinets 2nd doubling Bass clarinet 3 BassoonsBrass Edit 4 Horns 3 Trumpets 3 Trombones all with F extension Percussion 4 players Edit Large orchestral Bass Drum with Cymbal attached to side Large Tam tam with bow Marimba Kit Bass Drum optional Tambourine Timpani 8 Splash Cymbal Triangle Crash Cymbal Glockenspiel Low tenor Steel Drum Snare Drum 2 Large Stones Sandpaper Blocks Shekere Suspended Cymbal with bow Ruler Harps and keyboards Edit Harp HarpsichordStrings Edit 10 Violin I 8 Violin II 8 Violas 6 Cellos 4 Double bassesCritical response EditThe reviews for the opening production of Nothing were overwhelmingly positive In a five star review The Independent called the piece a pretty well flawless piece which unlike almost all other recent operas about adolescent alienation rings true to life 2 Rupert Christiansen in The Telegraph said The audience was held rapt by a performance that by any standards exerted a chilling power and intensity 3 Mark Pullinger of BachTrack com said Nothing is the most powerful contemporary opera I ve seen since Written on Skin which is high praise indeed 4 Future productions EditThis section needs to be updated Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information November 2018 The original production of Nothing was revived by the Danish National Opera in Aarhus Denmark in February 2017 as part of the European Capital of Culture celebrations 5 Nothing was performed at the Copenhagen Opera House in 2020 as part of the Royal Danish Theatre s 2020 2021 season 6 References Edit Bruce David Nothing 9 Jun 2015 Nothing is an unforgettable youth opera acted with blazing conviction review Independent co uk 29 February 2016 Archived from the original on 21 June 2022 Christiansen Rupert 27 February 2016 Nothing Glyndebourne review a chilling power and intensity The Telegraph The value of Nothing A dark thriller at Glyndebourne Intet Intet DET KGL TEATER Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Nothing opera amp oldid 1152983615, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
