TURN OF THE SCREW, 2019

Directed by Ella Marchment
Composed by Benjamin Britten
Bury Court Opera
March 2019

Plays To See
★★★★★

Director Ella Marchment has found a way to frame the action and to gradually tighten the terror that does full justice to the way Britten’s score takes us on that journey.
This is a superb opera and, while at one level it is a very effective ghost story, it is also a challenging and intriguing drama that asks difficult questions about a whole host of issues.
The most powerful version of this opera that I have ever seen.
– Owen Davies, Plays To See

Planet Hugill
★★★★★

This was a highly theatrical production … and Marchment drew some finely theatrical and very compelling performances from her cast.
This was a terrific production, one that any company could be proud of … everyone seized the moment, and as it should, this final performance left the audience wanting more.
– Robert Hugill, Planet Hugill

Bachtrack
★★★★

Directed with panache by the fast-rising Ella Marchment.
[Ella Marchment] has delivered a deliciously creepy show that’s full of original ideas.
– Mark Valencia, Bachtrack

musicOMH
★★★★

The best productions of Britten’s The Turn of the Screw are those that manage to do two contradictory things. On the one hand, they bring a sense of inevitability to the proceedings so that there is an overarching momentum to the evening as we feel the sickening cloud of doom hanging permanently overhead. At the same time, they lead us to believe that there are actually ways out of the problem, or even that there is not one to begin with. In Ella Marchment’s new production for Bury Court Opera this balance is achieved extraordinarily well from the start.
Bury Court Opera … could not be finishing on a higher note.
– Sam Smith, musicOMH

The Stage
★★★★

A starkly theatrical production of Britten’s bewitching opera.
– Yehuda Shapiro, The Stage

Bury Court Opera Audience Feedback
★★★★★

Well that was a truly fantastic night at the opera …one that I will remember for the rest of my life. Very chilling in that wonderful space. It was really an exceptional production.
– Bury Court Opera Audience Feedback

Bury Court Opera Audience Feedback
★★★★★

Just to say that I thought last night performance was SPECTACULARLY good. The best I’ve seen. In every aspect it was of the best standard. What a thriller it was…phew. It really stirs the imagination.
– Bury Court Opera Audience Feedback

Bury Court Opera Audience Feedback
★★★★★

Turn of the Screw was fabulous. Never seen such a good one, the singers and musicians were all excellent, and the staging was inspired. Loved the spooky bits!
– Bury Court Opera Audience Feedback

Bury Court Opera Audience Feedback
★★★★★

I really think that BCO’s Turn of the Screw was one of the best productions of any opera I have seen.
– Bury Court Opera Audience Feedback

Bury Court Opera Audience Feedback

★★★★★

What a triumph! Your Turn of the Screw was the perfect conclusion to your opera series. We saw it twice and got more out of it the second time. Your cast and orchestra were, as usual, outstanding, and we were left properly shattered at the end.
– Bury Court Opera Audience Feedback