BENJAMIN BRITTEN

4, 10, 17, 31 October | 3, 8, 21 November 2025

Conductor Gerry Cornelius
Director Robin Norton-Hale
Designer Eleanor Bull
Movement Director Rebecca Meltzer

A group of bored soldiers decide to test the loyalty of the wives they have left behind at home, unleashing a cruel and reckless series of events that have shattering consequences. Benjamin Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia was written in the aftermath of the Second World War and reflects a world struggling to remake itself after enormous suffering and destruction. It remains a brutally relevant and chilling exploration of the abuse of power, shot through with glimmers of hope for a better world, with a beautiful, sparse score for just thirteen players showing beauty and lyricism wrestling with the forces of darkness. ETO Artistic Director & CEO Robin Norton-Hale directs and Music Director Gerry Cornelius conducts, reuniting after their critically acclaimed production of Judith Weir’s Blond Eckbert in 2024.