Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds presents a sumptuous evening of piano and prose with one of internationally renowned pianist Lucy Parham’s composer portraits, Rêverie – celebrating the life and loves of Claude Debussy, featuring narration by Alex Jennings.
Created in 2012 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Claude Debussy, one of the most prolific and innovative composers of the early 20th century, Rêverie is the fourth biographical programme of composers’ words and music to be compiled and scripted by pianist Lucy Parham. A crucial element of Debussy’s complex intellectual and emotional world was an entangled love life that brought illicit trysts in Jersey, a brush with a revolver and even a suicide attempt. The narrative, which takes the form of a personal journal, follows him from his initial success with the Prix de Rome in 1885 to his untimely death in 1918. It is punctuated with solo piano works ranging from the ever-popular lyricism of Clair de Lune, Reverie and The Girl with the Flaxen Hair to such virtuosic showpieces as Jardins sous la Pluie, the Etudes and L’Isle Joyeuse.
Acknowledged as one of Britain’s finest pianists, Lucy Parham applies her sensitivity and imagination not only to concertos and recitals, but also to portraits in words and music of such composers as Schumann, Chopin, Liszt, Debussy and Rachmaninoff. Lucy first came to public attention as the Piano Winner of the 1984 “BBC Young Musician of the Year”. Since her Royal Festival Hall concerto debut at the age of 16, she has played throughout the UK as concerto soloist with most of the major British orchestras and is a frequent recitalist at the Wigmore Hall. She is also a Professor at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London.
Alex Jennings has worked extensively with the Royal Shakespeare Company and National Theatre. A three-time Olivier Award winner, he is the only performer to have won Olivier awards in the drama, musical and comedy categories. He played Prince Charles in the 2006 film The Queen. His other film appearances include The Wings of the Dove, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, Babel and The Lady in the Van. He also played Edward VIII, the Duke of Windsor, in the critically acclaimed Netflix series, The Crown.
Rêverie is at Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds for one night only, Sun 28 Oct at 7.30pm. Tickets are on sale at the Box Office, call 01284 769505, book online at www.theatreroyal.org/shows/reverie/ or visit the theatre in person.
