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06.09 - 21.09 2024
Events & Exhibitions

Free Theatre Presents ‘The Deadbeat Opera’

6 September 2024 8:00pm
/ Ladies and gentlemen, the Free Theatre is rolling up to the Pump House with another miserable tale! Following on from the success of Woyzeck we present to you the premiere of a low-life, low-budget opera performed by a highly talented cast of losers and deadbeats.... You won't want to miss this!
The Pump House, Tuam Street
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Ladies and gentlemen, we’re rolling up to the Pump House with another miserable tale!

Following on from the success of Woyzeck we present to you the premiere of a low-life, low-budget opera performed by a highly talented cast of losers and deadbeats.

The Deadbeat Opera is Free Theatre’s adaptation of John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera (1728) a revolutionary and then  immensely popular ‘anti-opera’ and forerunner to the modern-day musical where criminal gang leaders and prostitutes sung well known songs (by Johann Pepusch) and folk ballads about corruption, poverty and injustice; and Bertolt  Brecht’s The Threepenny Opera (1928) an adaptation 200 years later of Gay’s work with new music in the form of  cabaret songs composed by Kurt Weill.

In Brecht’s adaptation he reverses the moral positions of the bankers and police with that of the beggars and thieves: “Who is the greater criminal: he who robs a bank or he who founds one?” He also wanted to show that high moral  standards are only possible when one can afford them: “Food is the first thing, morals follow on”.

The Deadbeat Opera juxtaposes our current period of the 2020s with the historical periods of Gay and Brecht – the early days of the Industrial Revolution during the 1720s and the Great Depression during the 1920s.

Hester Ullyart performs the role of gang leader Macheath and is joined by a mix of experienced local performers –  Aaron Boyce, Heather McFarlane, Sarah Clare Judd, Greta Bond, Chris Carrow and Marian McCurdy; and our gang of musicians – Reuben Derrick, Sam White, Chris Reddington and Doug Brush.

Directed by Peter Falkenberg with design by Stuart Lloyd-Harris, the heritage Pump House once again provides the  perfect setting. Enjoy a beverage before the show and during the interval at our ‘Beggars and Bankers Pumphouse Bar’ where you’re guaranteed to get what you paid for.

We are performing The Deadbeat Opera in honour of our collaborator, sister and friend Samantha Boyce-Da Cruz who worked with us to develop the project last year. Sam passed away unexpectedly in February. She is very much with us  in all of our thoughts and we dedicate this opera to her.

Performances:

Friday 6th Sep 8.00pm

Saturday 7th Sep 8.00pm

Tuesday 10th Sep 8.00pm

Wednesday 11th Sep 8.00pm

Thursday 12th Sep 8.00pm

Friday 13th Sep 8.00pm

Saturday 14th Sep 8.00pm

Tuesday 17th Sep 8.00pm

Wednesday 18th Sep 8.00pm

Thursday 19th Sep 8.00pm

Friday 20th Sep 8.00pm

Saturday 21st Sep 8.00pm

 

Location: The Pump House, 544 Tuam St  Tickets: $25/$40 www.freetheatre.org.nz

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