Celebrate the spooky season with an operatic seance. You will start to wonder what is real as the deception and madness of Madame Flora takes over.
ABOUT THE EVENT
Madame Flora is a fraud. Preying on the desperate grief of those who wish to hear from beyond the grave, she holds fake seances and profits from these shows of illusion. It’s a family affair, involving her daugher Monica, and Toby, a servant boy rescued from the streets. But one day, as the table shakes and and the lights flicker, something odd happens. A hand, unseen, grabs her throat. She is no longer in control.
Gian Carlo Menotti’s The Medium is a chilling descent into deception, madness, and the supernatural. Led by Director, Sean Dennehy, you’ll be kept on the edge of your seat, as you start to wonder what is real, and what is the projection of Flora’s guilty conscience. Held over the Halloween weekend, it’s the perfect operatic outing for the spooky season
Date and Time
7pm, Saturday 31 October
7pm, Sunday 1 November
Location
The Grand on Ann (Masonic Memorial Centre), 311 Ann St, Brisbane City
Tickets (purchase below)
Adults - $85
4MBS Subscribers - $75
Student, Child and companion card tickets available
Language and Run Time
2 hours including an interval
Sung in English with Surtitles
Drinks
Available for purchase via the on-site bar beforehand and during interval.
SYNOPSIS
ACT I
The Medium’s Parlour
Monica, Madame Flora's daughter, and Toby, a mute servant boy rescued from "the streets of Budapest" play dress-up. When Madame Flora, or "Baba" as they call her, arrives home drunk, she chastises them for not preparing for that night's seance. Soon the guests arrive, Mr. and Mrs. Gobineau, regulars, and the widow Mrs. Nolan who is attending for the first time. With Madame Flora in a trance in her chair, a fake seance is held. At the end of the seance, Madame Flora "suddenly, with a loud gasp... clutches at her throat with both hands." She feels a phantom hand clutching her throat and is "terror-stricken." After demanding that the guests leave, she calls for Monica and tells her what she felt, eventually blaming Toby who was in the other room the whole time. In an effort to calm Baba's drunken rage toward Toby, Monica sings her the dark lullaby "The Black Swan".
ACT II
A few days later.
Toby is giving a puppet show for Monica. When Baba comes home, she resumes her accusations on Toby. The guests again arrive, expecting another seance but are driven away by Madame Flora. Once the guests are gone, she drives Toby out despite Monica's pleas on his behalf. With everyone gone, and Monica in her room, Baba pours herself another drink and questions her own sanity, eventually passing out. Once she has fallen asleep, Toby sneaks back in but can’t get to Monica. He instead searches the trunk to find his tambourine. Knocking the lid of the trunk, he startles Baba awake. Toby quickly hides in the puppet theatre as Baba tries to see where the noise came from and fetches a revolver. "Hysterically" she shouts out "Who is it? Speak or I'll Shoot!" and the puppet theatre curtain moves. Baba screams and fires at it several times. It is of course not a ghost, but Toby, who is tragically killed.
Meet the Cast
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![Portrait of a woman with vintage hairdo wearing diamond jewelry, including earrings, a necklace, and a strapless dress, against a plain background.]()
Louise Dorsman
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![A young woman with curly red hair and green eyes is smiling at the camera. She is wearing a teal blouse with a gold necklace, standing outdoors in front of large, green tropical leaves.]()
Isabel Matthews
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Loretta Melit
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![A young man with dark hair, beard, and fair skin, dressed in a beige blazer and white shirt, standing with one hand in his pocket against a plain gray background.]()
Patrick Bischoff
Meet the Creative Team
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![Smiling middle-aged man with short gray hair wearing a black t-shirt, sitting indoors near a window with a blurred background.]()
Sean Dennehy
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![Black and white portrait of a young man wearing glasses, a suit, and a bow tie, crossing his arms.]()
Andrew Robinson
