Sweetness & Badness is a thrilling opera, it was written in 2006 for performance by five singers and six instrumentalists especially for Welsh National Opera. It was created to tour to theatres and schools across England and Wales to audiences of teenagers.
‘In a wild place near the railway tunnel, overgrown, inaccessible and out-of-bands,, a young man spends most of his time. This young man excluded and friendless, knows the terrain well. He knows the times of every express train that pounds through the tunnel at a hundred miles per hour. He knows how long it takes for each train to pass through the tunnel…the young man races trains…’
Sweetness & Badness is a story about love, jealousy, peer pressure, risk and dare, chasing the adrenaline kick. It is set in the opening of a dark railway tunnel. The music is evocative and jazzy, and includes a sound track of recorded sounds and effects.It was aimed at teenagers aged 13-17. The piece addresses the part of the curriculum about personal and social health, and so is interesting for everyone.
Sweetness and Badness combines contemporary poetic language, a thrilling musical score, outstanding singing and dramatic performance.
The Story
Sweetness and Badness is a story of a boy who screams for no apparent reason. A boy with problems of every sort, dysfunctional and disliked. Trouble to teachers, an unwanted stat in the league tables.
This was the first day at his new school, he had no intention to fall in with the wrong crowd. He had no intention to fall in love with the wrong girl.
The Words
The words were written by Michael Wicherek. Michael is writer-in-residence and Artistic Director of Box Clever Theatre Company. He is highly regarded in the UK and internationally as a writer of contemporary drama for young people.
The Music
The music was written by Will Todd. Will is a composer whos work includes opera, musicals, oratorio and orchestral works. He has been featured on BBC Radio 2 and 3, Classic FM and has been performed all over the UK and in the USA.
Sweetness and Badness toured from September to December 2006. There were 5 school matinee performances at schools in Newport, Cheltenham, Eastleigh, Birmingham and Milton Keynes as well as a public performance at The Point in Eastleigh.
Cast:
CJ: Alun Rhys Jenkins
RaRa: Claire Hampton
Enzo: Julian Boyce
Bobby: Jasey Hall
Beau: Samantha Hay
Teachers can download a free teachers pack - just click on the links below
Click here <http://www.wno.org.uk/4697.file.dld> to download a Sweetness and Badness teacher's pack in English
Click here <http://www.wno.org.uk/4696.file.dld> to download a Sweetness and Badness teacher's pack in Welsh