Two angels fall to earth. Heaven help them.
Angels appear all too rarely. Don’t miss them.
Care becomes contempt and love becomes loathing in this dark, unsettling parable from contemporary composer Du Yun and librettist Royce Vavrek.
The Chinese-American composer, performance artist and activist won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Angel’s Bone, which is her second opera. In 2019, she was nominated for a Grammy Award.
Breaking with operatic tradition, Angel’s Bone fuses multiple musical genres, spoken word and immersive staging in an uncompromising tale of modern slavery and human trafficking.
An ENO production in collaboration with Factory International and BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, this UK premiere of the Pulitzer-prize winning opera will be staged at Aviva Studios, Manchester in May 2026. The chorus will be performed by Manchester based ensemble, Kantos Chamber Choir.
Overview
Mr and Mrs X.E, are a desperate couple facing financial crisis and a crumbling marriage and they long for a better life. When they discover the two bruised and battered angels in their garden, they bring them inside to nurse them back to life.
Care quickly turns to control. The couple seize the opportunity to exploit the spiritual beings in pursuit of fame and fortune.
Brutally clipping the angels’ wings to exploit this heavenly gift, the celestial beings are subjected to degrading, inhumane practices.
Staging & Score
Royce Vavrek’s libretto explores the dark forces that drive people into the murky underworld of human trafficking. This is underpinned with Du Yun’s eclectic style, ranging from chamber music and cabaret to electronica to punk.
Director Kip Williams adds dynamic staging that immerses audiences in the production. By using projection and multiple viewing angles, Williams invites audiences to question their own part in the exploitation of the celestial beings.
Singers & Creatives
Kip Williams is making his ENO and UK opera debut with Angel’s Bone. This production marks the continuation of his long-term creative collaboration with award-winning Designer, Marg Horwell whose recent successes include The Maids at Donmar Warehouse, The Picture of Dorian Gray on Broadway, and an upcoming production of Dracula starring Cynthia Erivo in the West End.
