Violinist Bjarte Eike and his Barokksolistene ensemble, AKA the Alehouse Boys, lead us from the bar to the back room of a tavern in an immersive two-part show.
Inspired by historical events, but with recent restrictions and lockdowns firmly in mind, the Boys invite you to experience a riotous 17th-century show – probably with a drink still in hand.
Part one, Purcell’s Playhouse, imagines the backroom of a bar where a makeshift theatre has sprung up to mark the end of Cromwell’s reign – and his puritanical ban on playhouses. A new flowering of theatre music takes place, where masques and dumbshows rub alongside Shakespeare and commedia dell’arte in beautiful union.
Part two is The Alehouse Sessions, where the action moves to the ‘tavern’ (a role played this evening by the Queen Elizabeth Hall Foyer). The incredible Barokksolistene musicians perform music by Purcell and Playford, mixed with sea shanties and folk songs – entirely from memory.
