The Tempest

About This Adaptation:

“My approach from the beginning had been to see Prospero as a female character; I was fascinated by the exploration of the dynamics of a relationship between mother and daughter, from sister to brother, a strong woman in a male-dominated societal structure. I was astounded at the resonance, and became acutely aware of the seismic shift the character’s impact has when seen from the woman’s perspective.

“My adaptation is not a loose, conceptualized version of The Tempest, but a musical adaptation employing only Shakespeare’s actual text – approximately 80 percent of which is sung. The text was the fount from which everything sprung. I wanted to combine a 'historically informed' texture with a contemporary sound. I created a style of music which is early-Baroque inspired with strongly modern harmonic language; in other words: theatre music, inspired by the Italian Baroque.”

Here are some excerpts from the demo recording:

Opening Sequence (excerpt) 4.79 mb
Contains the first 2 songs of 3 that segue into each other: the first “The Tempest” serves as the overture as we hear Ariel and the Spirits invoking the tempest which causes the shipwreck. Once the storm is in full gale, the scene takes place (not heard on CD) between the mariners and passengers. Gonzalo steps forward to sing “Now would I give…” as the scene shifts.

I Boarded the Ship 2.8 mb
Ariel’s song recounting the actions of his magical working to Prospero.

Come Unto These Yellow Sands / Full Fathom Five 2.9 mb
Ariel and the attendant Air Spirits, invisible, sing to a shipwreck survivor, Ferdinand (the son of the King of Naples, Alonso), and beckons him come onto the shore. [This song is scored for Ariel, soprano, alto, tenor & bass, but on the demo it’s all-male voices.] Once safely on shore, Ariel and the Spirits, sing to Ferdinand of his father’s death during the tempest.

There Be Some Sports 2.8 mb
Ferdinand sings about the hard labor Prospero has put him to, and about the love he feels for the “sweet mistress” Miranda (Prospero’s daughter)

Trio 587 kb
Caliban, Trinuclo & Stephano theme

The Masque 5.6 mb
Prospero has gathered together Spirits, Nymphs, and Goddesses to entertain and bring a blessing on Miranda and Ferdinand’s union

A Solemn Air 3.5 mb
Through “solemn music,” Prospero entrances Alonso, Antonio, Sebastian and Gonzalo and brings them all together and sings to them while they are in a trance state, regarding their past actions.

Where the Bee Sucks 1.8 mb
Before the four men are released from their enchantment, Prospero instructs Ariel to clothe her in her former robes of the Duke of Milan. Ariel sings as he dresses her. Prospero vows to set Ariel free at the end of the day.

And as an extra sample, here's an excerpt from Brave New World 2.1 mb
Prospero reunites Alonso and Ferdinand. Miranda, Prospero, Ferdinand and Miranda sing about the wonders they have experienced and how beautiful mankind can be.