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An Apology To The Historical Performance People, After Their Acquisition Of ABBA
Dear Historical Performance People, Please accept my apology in the face of your recent victory, after which it seems unlikely that the...
leodoulton
Dec 16, 20225 min read


Opera, Shakespeare, Noh: Three Suggestions For Acting Singers
When I was younger, I spent time in acting classes alongside singers. I have since directed, written for, and otherwise collaborated with...
leodoulton
Dec 14, 20225 min read


The Dance: Shakespeare, Opera, and Finding What Comes Next
The short version of this is: directing Shakespeare is much like directing opera. Both times, the text comes with certain ideas that are...
leodoulton
Dec 12, 20224 min read


The case for Come Bargain With Uncanny Things as opera
I am, adamantly, a broad-definition ‘opera’ person. At one extreme, I’d certainly struggle to not class Les Miserables as an opera. At...
leodoulton
Dec 11, 20226 min read


Baby, Don Giovanni’s Outside
It’s Christmas, and time for arguments about whether Baby, It’s Cold Outside is something an enlightened culture ought to listen to. To...
leodoulton
Dec 9, 20226 min read


On Being Not-Opera
I noticed something slightly strange in my responses to comment on Come Bargain With Uncanny Things: that I was rarely upset by comments...
leodoulton
Dec 8, 20223 min read


Dead Operas
Keep reading. There’s a Frankenstein reference before the end. History is littered with dead operas. Der Stein der Weisen (to which...
leodoulton
Dec 2, 20224 min read


Come Bargain With Uncanny Merch
I’m still not quite accepting that Come Bargain With Uncanny Things might yet return; there’s a market for it, and it’s quite desirable....
leodoulton
Nov 26, 20222 min read


Hybrid Futures: Some Hypotheticals For Come Bargain With Uncanny Things
I’d like to, ideally, have Virtually Opera making regular shows, and work that is accessible for those not able to make our live shows....
leodoulton
Nov 26, 20221 min read


Power And Play In Come Bargain With Uncanny Things
I’ve always had a slightly over-strong instinct of people ‘playing wrong’. Generally, I find myself liking play that lies comfortably in...
leodoulton
Nov 26, 20223 min read


A Community Bargains: Building Connection Via Low Stakes
Another night, another Come Bargain blog. This time, about a vision of community in interactive theatre, drawing on a comparison made by...
leodoulton
Nov 26, 20222 min read


Throwing Down The Long Black Glove: Coming To Bargain With A Lack Of Funding
I’ve been invited to discuss this a number of times by opera peers, and tried to hold my tongue so I don’t feel like I’m using a hot take...
leodoulton
Nov 25, 20226 min read


What Next For Come Bargain With Uncanny Things?
This is a question I have been getting a lot, since the immediate ‘next’ after each show is waiting for my hair to dry after removing an...
leodoulton
Nov 24, 20222 min read


How’s Come Bargain With Uncanny Things Going?
Pretty well, artistically. As with any show of this nature, I’ve learnt a lot just by doing it - how audiences respond to different...
leodoulton
Nov 22, 20222 min read


To The Victory Of Cake
After the first week of Come Bargain With Uncanny Things, I just wanted to write a short manifesto of a core concept. To the victory of...
leodoulton
Nov 20, 20221 min read


Some initial thoughts on the NPO Announcement
To be absolutely clear: I am writing this in my freelance capacity. I am not representing any of the NPOs that I have and continue to...
leodoulton
Nov 8, 202215 min read


Forming Interactive Ritual-Opera: What Might You Expect?
Last week I had the pleasure of some mentoring sessions with Chloe Mashiter and Tom Black to develop Come Bargain With Uncanny Things,...
leodoulton
Nov 2, 20222 min read


Opera Is Aristocratic (And Not Just In The Obvious Ways)
The first part of the title is a claim I have made on this blog before. A lot. It’s a central part of my default analysis of wider...
leodoulton
Oct 25, 20229 min read


Coming To Come Bargain Strand 5: Things people have called me to compare me to uncanny things
This blog is part of a series on how I came to write Come Bargain With Uncanny Things (tickets available now!). If you want to read the...
leodoulton
Oct 23, 20221 min read


Coming To Come Bargain With Uncanny Things Strand 4: The Reading List Cometh
This blog is part of a series on how I came to write Come Bargain With Uncanny Things (tickets available now!). If you want to read the...
leodoulton
Oct 22, 20228 min read
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