Maltings Theatre Presents ON BEHALF OF A MADMAN

Camilla Kerslake and Rodney Earl Clarke will lead a brand new opera set in the Oval Office of the White House, 'ON BEHALF OF A MADMAN', opening at the Maltings Theatre, St Albans. The production plays November 3rd-7th at 7.30pm.

When footage from a West Wing staff party is leaked to a major TV news channel, the US President goes on the warpath looking for the culprit. Staffers scheme and squabble while ambitious politicians exploit the turmoil for their own ends.

'On Behalf of a Madman' is set in the heart of American politics, the Oval Office, where the corruption is timeless, the news is fake, and there's music!

Creatives:

Original script by Charles Ogilvie (Saatchi Gallery)
Directed by Julia Mintzer (Washington National Opera)
Conducted by Thomas Payne (Royal Opera House)

Cast:

Camilla Kerslake (Classic Brit nominee, West End cast Les Misérables)
Rodney Earl Clarke (left) as the President (West End cast Les Misérables)
Lizzie Holmes (Olivier nominated La Bohème)

Tickets: www.maltingstheatre.co.uk or box office 0333 666 4466

Julia Mintzer: "In 2018 Grand Harmonie, the Boston-based period-instrument ensemble, commissioned me to create a show about fake news; they wanted a piece that could work as a sharp political commentary, while showing off what their particular instruments could do. Writer Charles Ogilvie and I were awarded a Bogliasco Foundation Fellowship to structure a story around the right music, and to flesh it out with original characters, new dialogue, and a libretto inspired by the Italian words to which the music was first set.

"I went through the words to all the famous operas from that time period, looking for bits that were relevant to politics and power. Once I'd chosen the songs, I grouped them by what kind of voice would sing them and what sort of character we would create around them. Although it's ostensibly a story about US politics, it has universal themes and I think Maltings audiences will really enjoy it: it has opera singing at a top level, a witty script, great music and a pacey West-Wing-type feel!"

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