Abstract
An opera written with composer Elfyn Jones based on the life of writer Jean Rhys.
The Trial of Jean Rhys is set in the condemned bungalow in Devon where Rhys spent her last years, haunted by gossiping neighbours and embittered by the literary success that came, in her words, ‘too late’. Looking back over her past as she awaits the arrival of a reporter, she puts herself on trial, niggling away at love, loneliness, success and failure, and weaving it all, finally, into the narrative of her semi-autobiographical novel, Wide Sargasso Sea. Her companion is local farmer and taxi-driver Sam Greenslade on whom she relies for meals, odd-jobs, cigarettes and whisky.
The Trial of Jean Rhys is set in the condemned bungalow in Devon where Rhys spent her last years, haunted by gossiping neighbours and embittered by the literary success that came, in her words, ‘too late’. Looking back over her past as she awaits the arrival of a reporter, she puts herself on trial, niggling away at love, loneliness, success and failure, and weaving it all, finally, into the narrative of her semi-autobiographical novel, Wide Sargasso Sea. Her companion is local farmer and taxi-driver Sam Greenslade on whom she relies for meals, odd-jobs, cigarettes and whisky.
| Original language | English |
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| Publication status | Published - 2012 |
| Event | 'The Trial of Jean Rhys' an opera: ROH2 Exposure - Linbury Theatre, Royal Opera House, London, United Kingdom Duration: 9 Aug 2012 → 10 Aug 2012 https://www.tete-a-tete.org.uk/event/the-trial-of-jean-rhys-2/ |