Second Movement, in association with Tête à Tête are gearing up for the 15th instalment of rough for opera, a series of showcases for new opera and works in progress.

rough for opera #15 features three new operas in development.

Jonathan Higgins’ Schutzwall is set in 1961 Berlin, one month after the wall was put up, overnight, with no warning. Catherine Kontz’s A Certain Sense of Order draws on the life and work of Anne Sexton, the fascinating American poet who struggled with mental illness all her life, and whose shocking poems were considered “confessional”. Benjamin Tassie’s Hurricane Zoo is an operatic adaptation of Hunter S. Thompson’s First Visit with Mescalito, the Gonzo-journalism-style account of his first mescaline trip.

rough for opera has presented 41 new and developing operas since 2011, and Tête à Tête is celebrating 20 years of fostering opera in the 20th and 21st centuries. To hear opera in these early stages is a rare opportunity, with a level of intimacy that can’t be beat. rough for opera #15 happens on March 7, 7:30pm at The Cockpit Theatre. Tickets are just £6, and you can find out more right here.