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British vocal consort the Gesualdo Six<\/a><\/strong> is set to present a series of theatrical concerts exploring the life of its namesake Carlo Gesualdo. Told by six singers, six actors, and a puppet, the story of the Renaissance composer infamous for the murder of his wife and her lover premieres in London on Friday (16 January).<\/p>\n The Death of Gesualdo<\/em> opens on the composer\u2019s deathbed and combines an exploration of the psychological and political forces that shaped his violent life with a programme of the music for which he is known. The production, which will premiere at London\u2019s St Martin-in-the-Fields<\/a><\/strong> before touring to the National Centre for Early Music<\/a><\/strong> and the Cathedral Church of St John the Divine in New York City, is directed by former Shakespeare\u2019s Globe director of music at Bill Barclay.<\/p>\n Barclay said: \u2018In Death of Gesualdo, <\/em>I superimpose Gesualdo\u2019s life over his music in order to give our minds a complete understanding of both. I find his music more fascinating the more I study him, and vice versa. The framing device of Death of Gesualdo<\/em>\u00a0is: What does a person like this experience in the last fleeting seconds of his life? My goal was to divine a way we can all safely metabolize our greatest sinning artists. I chose the lost art of tableaux vivants<\/em>\u00a0as a starting point because I find the stillness awkward yet powerful \u2013 much like the man himself.\u2019<\/p>\n
\n \u2018The Death of Gesualdo\u2019 recounts the violent life of composer Carlo Gesualdo with a programme of his music interwoven with tableaux vivants<\/strong>
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