RNIB Connect Radio’s Toby Davey is joined again by Vidar Hjardeng MBE, Inclusion and Diversity Consultant for ITV News across England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Channel Islands for the next in his regular Connect Radio theatre reviews.

This week we had a heart-wrenching tale of thwarted love, scandal and self-sacrifice as Vidar was reviewing Welsh National Opera’s production of Verdi’s La Traviata at the Birmingham Hippodrome Theatre on Thursday 9 November at 7.30pm with description by Professional Audio Describers Jonathan Nash and Julia Grundy.

About Welsh National Opera’s production of Verdi’s La Traviata:

Always the belle of the ball, Violetta, the most elegant courtesan in all of Paris, has her choice of wealthy admirers falling at her feet. She lives for the glamorous lifestyle of high society, but when she finds herself deeply in love with the penniless aristocratic poet Alfredo, she is willing to give everything up for him. Can she be accepted just as a woman who has fallen in love, or is she to remain a ‘fallen woman’ whose love has no future?

Based on Alexandre Dumas fils’s novel, La Dame aux Camélias, Verdi’s timeless opera features some of the most evocative arias and melodies including the instantly recognisable Brindisi (the drinking song) and the beautifully poignant finale, Addio del passato. Elegant and highly charged, WNO’s five-star production will leave you in no doubt why this heart-wrenching tale of thwarted love, scandal and self-sacrifice makes La Traviata a favourite with audiences across the world.

Sung in Italian, with English surtitles.

For more about Welsh National Opera and audio described performances of their productions do visit the following pages of their website - https://wno.org.uk/take-part/access-performances

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