Vicki Berwick’s stage adaptation of Michael Morpurgo’s The Mozart Question will make its debut this 2022 season, with The Barn Theatre. Directed by Jessica Daniels, the play is the fourth production based on Morpurgo’s work that the Barn Theatre has adapted and follows acclaimed violinist Paolo Levi as he recounts, to a young journalist, his family’s history and the power of music. Morpurgo’s story, originally published in 2007, is a haunting tale of love, secrets, and survival through the dark history of the Holocaust. This new adaptation compromises of an actor-musician ensemble with composition, arrangements, and musical supervision by Rudy Percival.
I was lucky to be invited along to one of the rehearsals for a preview of how the novel will be brought to life on stage. Lara Lewis (playing the journalist, Leslie, and Young Paolo) and Matthew Romain (Old Paolo) gave a confident start to the play, opening with Old Paolo’s hostile reactions to Leslie that really brought to life the themes of secrecy and sensitivity. The simplicity of certain moments such as Romain’s character fiddling with his cardigan sleeve really struck me as I watched it—the haunting stories of the Holocaust are difficult to discuss, and I was in awe at how brilliantly this play handles such a topic.
Rudy Percival’s musical supervision is truly incredible. I must admit that I am not an avid listener of classical music; however, I was amazed at the power the actor-musician ensemble added to the story. Starting simply with one or two violinists, the music builds with the slow addition of more instruments until music and movement fill the stage, telling the story in such a unique way. It was great to see music take such a main feature on the stage, especially from a novel that uses the power of music as one of its main themes, and the simple choreography made for visually, and audibly, beautiful scenes.
Speaking with the Cast
“It is a wonderfully universal story”
Matthew Romain
As someone who adored the book and Michael Foreman’s beautiful illustrations, I was concerned at how the power of these images would be translated onto the stage. Vicki Berwick explains: “Now the music and the movement has been added, it was like [the images and the story were] the skeleton and now it has its flesh on”. It is true that the music and movement is a beautiful replacement for the illustrations, taking the novel’s story and giving it new life through applying the audible intensity of the instruments.
“It is a wonderfully universal story,” Matthew Romain tells me. “That’s the kind of beauty of it, that it’s not didactic; it’s not that we’re hammering home some kind of message.” The story, combined with the maturity and sensitivity of this adaptation, makes the play suitable for such a wide audience who will all walk away having experienced different emotions and connections to the story. This maturity comes from the cast’s own preparation, as they visited the Imperial War Museum within their rehearsal schedule to educate themselves on the powerful history behind the story; I feel this experience enhanced a deeper connection to the history that translated into such a natural portrayal of the characters.
This adaptation of The Mozart Question pairs a variety of mediums in speech, music and movement to create a unique theatrical experience. Originally planned for the 2020 theatre season, the project has long awaited its debut. The rarity of having music as a central focus on stage makes for such an exciting piece of theatre; the combination of Vicki Berwick’s script, Jessica Daniel’s direction and Rudy Percival’s composition truly is something special.
The Mozart Question will be performed at The Barn Theatre, Cirencester from 21 March to 30 April 2022. You can purchase tickets for the performance here.
Words by Megan Geall
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