Exhibition
Messiah and Portsmouth: Then and Now
13 Mar 2017 – 30 Jun 2017
Event times
Weekdays: 9am-5pm
Cost of entry
Free Entry
Address
- University of Portsmouth, Eldon Building, Winston Churchill Avenue
- Portsmouth
England - PO1 2DJ
- United Kingdom
Faculty of Creative and Cultural Industries University of Portsmouth
Travel Information
- Train: London Waterloo (1hr 30mins) or London Victoria (2hrs 10mins), Bristol (2hrs) and South Wales (3hrs 15mins)
The Faculty of Creative and Cultural Industries is delighted to present an exhibition of archival research by Dr George Burrows who reveals that Handel’s Messiah was instrumental in the cultural life of Portsmouth over the turn of the nineteenth century.
About
The exhibition displays maps and documents from the archives 1789-1812 which document performances of Messiah in Portsmouth, in the context of the expansion of the city and of the grand musical festivals that commemorated Handel and his musical philanthropy.
A word book from an 1812 performance of Messiah in Portsmouth, featuring the Italian opera singer, Angelica Catalani (one of the greatest bravura singers of all times) was annotated by a member of the audience. This provided inspiration for the re-creation of a distinctive Portsmouth version of Messiah, staged on Saturday 18th March 2017. Messiah and Portsmouth: Then and Now frames the performance with documents and images.
Venue: First Floor, Eldon West, Eldon Building (Note: This exhibition was previously displayed at the Guildhall in the Freda Swain Lounge.)
