|
Pierrot on the Stage of Desire (1998) |
ensemble - 10'
first performance: 15 April 1998, Ensemble 21, New York.
Pierrot on the Stage of Desire reflects my interest in the development and transformation of the Commedia dell'arte characters and may be seen as a kind of study for a larger scale musical Pantomime based on the same theme. The music is divided into a series of short, dramatic tableaux, each featuring an instrumental soloist and separated by developing commentaries for more or less the full ensemble. The work derives its title from Robert Storey's book Pierrots on the Stage of Desire (a detailed history of the French comic pantomime) and was commissioned by Ensemble 21.
Roger Redgate