Dumbworld (UK) : He Did What?

Presented as part of Sonica Glasgow 2019

‘Utterly captivating. The perfect introduction for an opera novice and an exciting and challenging alternative for die hard opera goers’ – Youth Opera Review

A ribald, genre-busting new work from Belfast production company, Dumbworld (Composer Brian Irvine & Director John McIlduff), He Did What? mashes together the unlikely combination of street art and opera to punchy, uncompromising and comic effect. Both a riff on Belfast’s notorious past and an indictment of the politics of its present, He Did What? tells the story of a would-be revenge attack among octogenarians, and takes opera off the stage and out on the streets to play its story out as wall projections in public spaces, with the soundtrack playing through wireless headphones. Challenging our perceptions of what opera is for, Dumbworld employ new technologies, humour and a strong political vision in their unique take on the form.

Supported by: The Arts Council of Northern Ireland, in partnership with the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland