stage
UNDER MILK WOOD: AN OPERA
Taliesin Arts Centre, Swansea, Thurs 3-Sat 5 Apr; Aberystwyth Arts Centre, Tue 8 Apr;
Sherman Cymru, Cardiff, Fri 11 + Sat 12 Apr
Performing Under Milk Wood for the first time 60 years ago, it’s unlikely that Dylan Thomas would envisage its
widespread popularity and the different forms it has taken – especially its most recent venture into the world of opera.
It is no secret that 2014 is the centenary of the renowned poet’s birth and with it a host of celebratory events to
mark the occasion – cue Under Milk Wood: An Opera.
Having already graced stage and screen, the famous play for voices, which was originally written for radio, is
now setting out its stall as a musical creation. The poetry and music spectacular opens at Taliesin Arts Centre in
Swansea, before touring various venues around Wales as part of the Dylan Thomas 100 festival.
So how does a play with over 50 characters translate itself to the world of arias and libretto? Composed by John
Metcalf and directed by Keith Turnbull, the 13-strong cast will each play numerous characters to bring the
fictional village of Llareggub to life with their unique voices and musical instruments.
Spending time in the company of Captain Cat and his fellow villagers – the location of which is believed to
be based on the West Wales coastal village of New Quay and the inhabitants based on his experience living in
Laugharne – their hopes, dreams and inner thoughts will be explored on the stage.
Having previously composed Kafka’s Chimp and A Chair In Love, John Metcalf’s seventh opera is one that he
has a close affinity to, as he explains: “Born, like Dylan Thomas, in Swansea and living in West Wales where Under
Milk Wood is set, I feel a very familiar instinctive connection with this iconic work.”
With so many events for Dylan Thomas’ centenary, it’s a marker of the popularity of the man who still invites much
intrigue and debate. It seems that his poetic prose still resonates with present audiences and hopefully will inspire
future generations.
Tickets: £18-£20. Info: www.taliesinartscentre.co.uk/undermilkwood RHIANON HOLLEY
pic: BILL COOPER
FINDING JOY
Various venues across South Wales
Wed 8 Apr-Sat 7 June
A young, drug-taking, petty criminal
teenager becomes the carer for his
increasingly forgetful and elderly
grandmother. You’d be forgiven for thinking
this was the synopsis for a soap-opera story
arc, but Finding Joy is as far removed an
experience from that as you could get.
A story about an old woman succumbing
to dementia sounds like a heavy night out
and the scenes where you are shown how
the world someti