Librettist’s note

In the past, although opera may have been written about teenager it has not been written specifically for them. In doing so with Zoë, we have aimed to achieve something of the pace to satisfy a habitually TV-watching and film-going rather than a conventional opera-going audience. This is not pandering to the hoary myth that teenagers only have a fifteen-second attention span. It is rather to see what happens to opera (and indeed to the opera-house) when it is subject to the same demands of pace that are now commonplace in TV and film.

Both of these mediums were previously much more static. Over time they have speeded up to produce more excitement and better, more sophisticated storytelling. Could contemporary opera benefit from a degree of the same acceleration without destroying its vocal and orchestral integrity? A teenage opera is a rare opportunity to find out.