Almost two years in the making, this sumptuous new adaptation of Thomas Hardy’s classic novel Tess of the d’Urbervilles has been created by composer Michael Blore and award-winning playwright and lyricist Michael Davies.
Please note: Although this event is taking place at The Other Place, it has not been produced by the RSC.
Set in the Wessex so beloved by Thomas Hardy, Tess tells the devastating story of Tess Durbeyfield, daughter of a poor villager who fatefully discovers that she and her family may be related to the ancient aristocratic d’Urberville family.
As Tess is sent to seek respectability with her new-found relatives, she embarks on an emotional and dramatic journey that will lead her to love, loss and ultimate tragedy. Struggling with the social mores of the rural Victorian world she inhabits, and the hypocrisy that plagues her sex, she forges a desperate path to pursue her own destiny against the backdrop of a society that seems determined to doom her.
Tess couples Hardy’s iconic tale with a majestic score and evocative libretto, offering a bold and highly expressive retelling of this ever-popular, much-loved story. For more information about the musical’s development, and to hear the concept album recording for free, visit www.tessthemusical.com/album and sign up to join #TeamTess.
Night Project Theatre are thrilled to be presenting Tess at the very start of its creative journey and to be staging a full production for the first time.
Founded in Spring 2014, Night Project Theatre was established to bring together performers, directors and industry creatives to present musical theatre in intimate venues from either new portfolio or those undiscovered gems that deserve a larger audience. Working with both professional and amateur artists to produce small but beautifully formed theatre in a collaborative environment, over the past 5 years they have played to sell-out audiences across the Midlands on some remarkable pieces of theatre. Previous Productions include The Hired Man (Howard Goodall), Dracula (Frank Wildhorn), The Last Five Years (Jason Robert Brown), Sweeney Todd (Stephen Sondheim) and Songs For A New World (Jason Robert Brown).
In addition, Night Project Theatre hosts concert evenings to showcase new works in musical theatre, and for Save the Children raised over £18,000 to support children of war at its 2017 WAR SONG event.
This is a workshop production of a new musical that is still in development.