"A better Grimes would be hard to find... Neil Armfield's production is a triumph for its dramatic focus" - Sydney Morning Herald
"The most compelling piece of drama seen in Sydney all year—in any theater, bar none" - Opera magazine
CAST
Anthony Dean Griffey Peter Grimes
Katie van Kooten Ellen Orford
Christopher Purves Captain Balstrode
Meredith Arwady Auntie
Patrick Carfizzi Swallow
Beau Gibson Bob Boles
Catherine Wyn-Rogers Mrs. Sedley
Joseph Evans Rev. Horace Adams
Liam Bonner Ned Keene
Robert Pomakov Hobson
CREATIVE TEAM
Patrick Summers Conductor
Neil Armfield Director
Ralph Meyers Set Designer
Tess Schofield Costume Designer
Damien Cooper Lighting Designer
Denni Sayers Choreographer
Richard Bado Chorus Master
Houston Grand Opera Orchestra and Chorus
Brown Theater | Sung in English with Supertitles
The mysterious death of an apprentice ignites the town’s suspicions against the fisherman Peter Grimes (Anthony Dean Griffey). School-mistress Ellen Orford (Katie Van Kooten) is his only ally. Peter Grimes brings to the stage the human struggle of the individual versus the masses against the backdrop of the raging sea. Directed by Tony Award nominee Neil Armfield (Exit the King – Broadway 2009), this HGO co-production of Britten's masterpiece garnered enthusiastic accolades at its Australian premiere. Houston Grand Opera Music Director Patrick Summers conducts.
A co-production of Opera Australia, Houston Grand Opera, West Australian Opera and Perth International Arts Festival.
Premier Guarantor Houston Grand Opera Endowment, Inc.
Guarantors Mr. John G. Turner and Mr. Jerry G. Fischer
The Britten Series is supported in part by the Britten-Pears Foundation
Banner photo by Branco Gaica for Opera Australia
2010/11 Season
Madame Butterfly | Peter Grimes | Dead Man Walking Lucia di Lammermoor | The Marriage of Figaro | Ariadne auf Naxos