Mary Motorhead & Trade

Emma O’Halloran’s operatic adaptation of Mark O'Halloran’s two plays sees a very unique context for two confronting stories. Mary Motorhead (Emily Edmonds, mezzo soprano) is a murderer who brutally stabbed her husband in the head with a 12-inch carving knife. In a solitary and confined space which represents a prison, she reflects on the motivation and circumstances of her chilling crime. Trade depicts an encounter between a Young Man (Callum McGing, tenor) who meets his Older Man (Christopher Hillier baritone) client in a seedy hotel. 

The turbulence of the emotions of all these marginal characters is powerfully captured in the music. The dramatic contours of the compositions are complimented by the subtle infusion of contemporary music and sounds, and the performers of these rich and complex stories are beautifully accompanied by an amplified chamber orchestra. The compositions are delicate and gentle in the way they blend genres and provide extremely moving and beautiful music which is expertly executed by the musicians.

These two very contemporary compositions test the boundaries of the opera genre and deal with highly sensitive issues. The performers are exceptional and bring a very rich and textured approach to the portrayals, allowing all the nuances of their raw and difficult sentiments to emerge. The costume design (Oliver Hall) and the set design aptly reflect the realism of the stories and reiterate the hard-edged nature of the characters.

Patricia Di Risio 

Photographer: Kate Cameron