An opera for The Little Prince

The opera The Little Prince was written by Hollywood Oscar-winning composer Rachel Portman and directed by Francesca Zambello. It is currently being co-produced by the BBC and Sony Classical in the UK and is to be shown on TV on 29 November 2004 on BBC 2, with a further broadcast scheduled for Christmas. A double-CD audio version and a DVD are available from Sony Classical.

What is perhaps most impressive is that over 25,000 children from all over the UK applied to take part. A total of 6,500 talented youngsters were auditioned, all aged between 7 and 16, but only a handful stood a chance of being selected to play the roles of the little prince and the rose, alongside Willard White (the king), Aled Jones (the drunkard) and Lesley Garrett (the fox). In the end, Joseph MacManners was chosen for the role of the little prince, and played his part with extraordinary talent. The singers were filmed by children\’s TV programme Blue Peter during their performance.

A double-CD audio version and a DVD are available from Sony Classical. The DVD contains a bonus feature of the recordings directed by Blue Peter.

Prologue:
When the pilot was still a child, he used to draw wonderful drawings, but grown-ups never understood them. Now he is a pilot and flies all over the world, steering by the stars.