Composer Tim Benjamin gives us a masterclass in how to create a one-handed opera twice over in his Life Stories. Rest in Peace, inspired by a short story from Chekhov (Life in Questions and Exclamations, 1882), lets us hear the vivid flickers of a decaying, addled mind, fascinating both for their intensity and their randomness. If Harold Pinter had ever written an opera, this would surely be it. Benjamin’s Silent Jack, a response to the legend of real-life Lady Katherine Ferrers, transports us to the eighteenth century: beautifully written and superbly sung and acted by Taylor Wilson, Silent Jack is a joy from start to finish.

People Watch, the third and final Little Opera from pioneering charity Streetwise Opera, dramatises the experience of watching TV: our various sofa-squirming reactions can be highly entertaining, as anyone who has ever watched Gogglebox will know.

Click here to read my full review on Bachtrack.

Margaret Lockwood in The Wicked Lady, 1945, a film based on the life of Lady Katherine Ferrers: click the photo to see the film!