HENRY PURCELL’S DIDO AND AENEAS at Chan Centre for Performing Arts

Early Music Vancouver presents Purcell’s iconic Baroque masterpiece, and England’s first and most beloved opera, Dido and Aeneas, Thursday, July 30 at 7:30pm at the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts. Considered one of the greatest operas ever written, its stunning final aria Dido’s Lament is one of the most instantly recognizable and moving scenes in the history of opera. Toronto-based soprano Monica Whicher, who has given critically acclaimed performances of Dido with Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra and Opera Atelier, will play the fated queen and is joined by supporting vocalists: English tenor Charles Daniels - an EMV favourite who appears on over ninety recordings; GRAMMY-Award winning, Miami-based countertenor Reginald L. Mobley; young Quebec sopranos Pascale Beaudin and Jacqueline Woodley and frequent EMV collaborator baritone Sumner Thompson as Aeneas. The combined ensemble performs under the musical direction of acclaimed conductor and harpsichordist Alexander Weimann, one of the most sought-after ensemble directors, soloists, and chamber music partners of his generation.