Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique – from memory // Aurora Orchestra

Revisit Aurora’s landmark Orchestral Theatre staging of Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique at the 2019 BBC Proms. Berlioz – Symphonie fantastique (from memory) Mathew Baynton – actor Nicholas Collon – conductor Jane Mitchell & James Bonas – directors Kate Wicks – production designer Will Reynolds – consultant designer Cydney Uffindell-Phillips – movement consultant Concept and script by Jane Mitchell Waltz through a glittering ball, enter a feverish dream, march to your own execution, and spin into dark delirium at a witches’ sabbath. Take on the opium-infused visions of a tortured artist haunted by unrequited passion in this Orchestral Theatre production of Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique. Inspired by the composer’s own romantic infatuation with a young actress, this epoch-making work unfolds as a cinematic fantasy full of wild imagination and demonic madness – by turns gorgeous and grotesque. Aurora Orchestra and actor Mathew Baynton (Horrible Histories, Ghosts) invite you to a creative orchestral journey through Berlioz’s hallucinatory tale of ecstasy and despair, passion and obsession. This unique concert interweaves a memorised performance of the Symphonie fantastique with theatrical design, lighting, movement and Berlioz’s own words about his music, alongside a presentation of the work’s musical ideas with live excerpts. ’The performance was as vivid to the ear as it was to the eye.’ ★★★★ The Guardian Filmed live at the Royal Albert Hall on Thursday 12 September 2019. Orchestral Theatre staging concept by Aurora Orchestra. Footage courtesy of BBC Proms. To explore more Aurora Play broadcasts and find out more about our memorised performances, visit . #AuroraPlay