view counter

Desdemona by Toni Morrison, Peter Sellars and Rokia Traore at The Barbican

At a glance
Add to calendar
Time 19:30
Date 19/07/12
Price £15

The story of Desdemona from Shakespeare's Othello is re-imagined by Nobel Prize laureate Toni Morrison.

Morrison worked with acclaimed opera director Peter Sellars and Malian singer songwriter Rokia Traoré, featuring actress Tina Benko.

Morrison's response to Sellars 2009 production of one of Shakespeare's most famous plays is an intimate dialogue of words and music between Desdemona and her African nurse Barbary. Morrison gives voice and depth to the female characters, letting them speak and sing in the fullness of their hearts.

Directed by Peter Sellars, with original songs by Rokia Traoré, who performs the role of Barbary, the interweaving of African and Western melodies intensifies the intimacy of the evening with delicate, probing and gently luminous tones.

view counter