Details

The astonishing story of a German woman shocked during a wartime bombing raid in 1944 into conceiving a child without a father was the intriguing starting point for Parthenogenesis - its title describing the creation of a child solely with the genetic material of its mother. The theme is explored in Michael Symmons Roberts's libretto in the dramatic exchanges between the mother, her daughter and an earth-bound angel, and also in James MacMillan's music that entwines musical representations of the codes of DNA itself into the score.

Cast/Performers

Amy Freston, Stephan Loges, Charlotte Roach

Creatives/Company

Music: James MacMillan
Lyrics: Michael Symmons Roberts
Conductor: James MacMillan
Company: Britten Sinfonia
Director: Katie Mitchell
Design: Vicki Mortimer
Lighting: Lucy Carter
Sound: Gareth Fry