Dream Finale

In the several weeks since I was last in London for the Children’s BBC Prom, I’ve been mostly immersed in preparations for my debut at Dutch National Opera with Jeanine Tesori’s Blue, but I did take a week off to return to London to conduct the aptly named Dream Prom.

This storytelling spectacle transformed the Royal Albert Hall with dreamscape projections and live music, following the story of Sky (played by actor Omari Douglas), who, haunted by a recurring dream from his childhood, turns to a Dream Journal to understand his heritage and history.

The evening was co-created by 30 BBC Open Music artists from a range of backgrounds, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the BBC. Taking inspiration from the artists’ life stories and their artistic journeys, stage director Ruth Marriner created a series of vignettes on the subject of dreams, identity and mental well-being which I interwove with an eclectic musical programme ranging from French Impressionism to Classical Indian Jazz Fusion, via Pop and Gospel. 

I was joined on stage by Kala Ramnath on Indian Violin, Gurdain Rayatt on Tabla, Katherine Priddy on Vocals and multiple presenters. Behind the scenes, composers Lars Moller and Max de Wardener also contributed to what became a quite breathtaking multimedia show, enriched by gorgeous lighting and sound design. What a treat!

I’ve put some images below to give you a taste of this special evening which brought my joyful musical summer in the U.K. to a really fulfilling close.

K.R.

Photography by Mark Allan