Adelaide Festival Centre Presents ENOCH ARDEN

John Bell AO OBE, founder of Bell Shakespeare Company and Helpmann Award winner, partners with internationally acclaimed ARIA-nominated pianist Simon Tedeschi to present a deeply moving performance of Lord Alfred Tennyson's classic 1864 poem Enoch Arden, set to music by German composer Richard Strauss in Space Theatre on Saturday 15 July.

This national tour coincides with the release of a new audio recording of Enoch Arden by Bell and Tedeschi, due for release by ABC Classics/UMA on 16 June 2017.

In Tedeschi's own words, Enoch Arden depicts "extremities of emotional pathos in which an everyman is thrust into a maelstrom of betrayal, longing, regret and often, madness."

Told through spoken word and solo piano, this tale of love, loss and redemption follows the story of three childhood friends, Enoch Arden, Philip Ray, and Annie Lee. Enoch and Annie marry and start a family, but after Enoch is shipwrecked on an island for ten years, he returns home to find his soulmate Annie remarried to his best friend Philip, believing Enoch to be dead. Heartbroken when he learns of Annie and Philip's relationship and of their child together, Enoch must decide whether to intervene or to leave the two lovers to their lives together, sacrificing his own happiness in the process.

Bell, long heralded as a major creative force in the Australian theatre scene and named one of Australia's National Living Treasures, is delighted to be performing with a musician as accomplished and masterful as Tedeschi.

John Bell: "I love working with musicians; I love being up close and watching their technique and feeling the visceral presence of the instruments... I've admirEd Simon for a long time; he's a bit of an entertainer and showman as well as being a great pianist. It will be fun to share the stage with him... Of one thing I can assure you: Simon's performance of Strauss' expressive and at times exquisite score is good enough reason to have a listen."

Simon Tedeschi: "I was simply fascinated by the work - the idea of man vs nature, the individual vs society and the very tenuous grip on civilisation that we all face is just as relevant in 2017."

Adelaide Festival Centre CEO and Artistic Director Douglas Gautier: "Just like Adelaide Festival Centre itself, Enoch Arden represents a fusion of different art forms; the highest quality theatre and the best classical music that Australia has to offer. We look forward to presenting this performance of a rarely heard piece, with such great performers."

Enoch Arden is part of a national tour:

Wed June 14, 7:30pm at His Majesty's Theatre, Perth (WA)
Fri June 16, 7:30pm at Avoca Beach Picture Theatre (NSW)
Sun July 2, 12:30pm at Four Winds Windsong Pavilion, Bermagui (NSW)
Tue July 4, 6:30pm at Queensland Performing Arts Centre, Brisbane (QLD)
Sun July 9, 3pm at Utzon Music Series, Sydney Opera House (NSW)
Sat July 15, 1:30pm & 7.30pm at Adelaide Festival Centre (SA)

For further information visit adelaidefestivalcentre.com.au.

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