The Little Match Girl Passion
14 October 2023
This event takes place off site at Verbrugghen Hall
Classical Music
Please note this event does not take place at Sydney Opera House.
David Lang’s The Little Match Girl Passion views Hans Christian Andersen’s dark tale through the lens of Bach’s St Matthew Passion. Find the passion in this timeless narrative of suffering and hope, elevated to a higher plane with breathtaking music that resonates with emotional power.
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Date |
Time |
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Saturday 14 October |
7:30pm |
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All tickets |
Price |
|---|---|
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Unreserved Seating |
$75 |
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Under 30 |
$30 |
$8.95 booking fee applies per transaction
Prices correct at the time of publication and subject to change without notice. Exact prices will be displayed with seat selection.
Children aged 15 years and under must be accompanied at all times.
The authorised agencies for this event are Sydney Opera House and Sydney Philharmonia Choirs. For more information about Authorised Agencies, see the frequently asked questions below.
General Public tickets on-sale
9am, Wednesday 23 November 2022
In English
Wheelchair accessible
No language barrier
Find out more about accessibility at Sydney Opera House
Run Time
This performance will run for approximately 70 minutes with no interval.
Age
Recommended for ages 12+
The Classical ReviewWoven into a luminous, ever-moving tapestry, its vocal lines evoke a fragile world full of soaring hope and ominous shadows.
The Little Match Girl Passion
David Lang’s Pulitzer prize-winning Little Match Girl Passion takes Hans Christian Andersen’s dark tale – almost too despairing to be a children’s story – and views it through the lens of Bach’s St Matthew Passion, weaving its narrative of suffering and hope with commentary and reflections that heighten its emotional impact.
“There is no Bach in this piece,” says Lang, “and there is no Jesus.” Instead he substitutes the suffering of the Little Match Girl for Jesus’ suffering, “elevating her sorrow to a higher plane”.
Musically, The Little Match Girl Passion combines the clarity of unaccompanied voices with the antique aura of bells and drums, building a haunting sound world from the simplest of means. It’s impossible to hear this breathtaking music – this passion for our time – and be left unmoved. It will be complemented by music for choir and piano by Australian composers Luke Byrne and Naomi Crellin.
Program
Luke BYRNE
Four Songs from Grimm’s
Luke BYRNE
The Six Swans
Naomi CRELLIN
Thrice Upon a Time*
David LANG
The Little Match Girl Passion
*Premiere
Artists
Conductor
Elizabeth Scott
VOX
Piano
Luke Byrne
Presented by Sydney Philharmonia Choirs
Season 2025
Sydney Philharmonia Choirs
Voice. Energy. Joy.
In 2025 Sydney Philharmonia Choirs invite you to find your voice, energy and joy in the rich banquet of music they have to sing for you.
Other information
Covid-safe information
The health and wellbeing of everyone attending the Opera House is our top priority. We’re committed to making your experience safe, comfortable and enjoyable, with a number of measures in place including regular cleaning of high-touch areas, air conditioning systems that maximise ventilation, and hand sanitiser stations positioned in all paths of travel. We remind our audiences and visitors to please stay home if you feel unwell. If you need to discuss your ticketing or booking options, contact our Box Office team on 02 9250 7777.
The health and wellbeing of everyone attending the Opera House is our top priority. We have a number of safety measures in place including regular cleaning of high-touch areas, air conditioning systems that maximise ventilation, and hand sanitiser stations positioned in all paths of travel. While face masks are no longer required, we ask all our patrons and visitors to practise good hygiene.
The Sydney Opera House no longer requires patrons to show that they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
Frequently asked questions
Ticket purchases and collection at our Box Office is discouraged and eTicket or postal delivery methods should be used, wherever possible. However, if you are collecting your tickets from the Box Office, we recommend doing this at least 60 minutes before the event starts. If you have already received your tickets, the venue doors will be open 45 minutes pre-show for Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 30 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. Please take your seats as soon as you arrive.
If you are late, we will seat you as soon as we can and, where possible, in your allocated seat. However, to reduce movement in the venue as well as minimise disruption to the performance and other patrons, ticketholders may be seated in an allocated latecomer’s seat. Please be aware that some events have lock-out periods. In these cases, latecomers will be admitted at a suitable break in the performance. On occasions, this may not be until the interval, or at all where there is no interval.
Details of our right to refuse admission can be found in our General Terms and Conditions for Tickets and Events.
In accordance with our venue security procedures, Opera House security will be scanning and checking bags under the Monumental Stairs, prior to entering the building. Bags will be scanned by an x-ray machine, and staff will wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) when handling your belongings, such as gloves. Cloaking facilities will be open 60 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 60 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. However it is strongly encouraged that you travel lightly to minimise contact and queuing. Any bags larger than an A4 piece of paper will need to be checked into the Cloak Room.
The authorised agency for this event is the Sydney Opera House.
Only tickets purchased by authorised agencies should be considered reliable. If you purchase tickets from a non-authorised agency such as Ticketmaster Resale, Viagogo, Ticketbis, eBay, Gumtree, Tickets Australia or any other unauthorised seller, you risk that these tickets are fake, void or have previously been cancelled. RESALE RESTRICTION APPLIES. For more details, please refer to our General Terms and Conditions for Tickets and Attendance at Events.
Please contact Box Office on 9250 7777 as soon as possible to advise if you can no longer attend.
Foyers will be open 90 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and two hours pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances. Refreshments will be available for purchase from our theatre bars.
The venue doors will be open 45 minutes pre-show for Concert Hall and Joan Sutherland Theatre performances, and 30 minutes pre-show for Western Foyer venue performances.
Please bring a credit or debit card for any on site purchases to enable contactless payment. You’re welcome to bring your own water bottle but no other food and drinks are permitted inside our venues. Opera Bar, Opera Kitchen and Portside are also available for you to enjoy.
The health, safety and wellbeing of everyone at the Sydney Opera House is our top priority. In line with this commitment, the Opera House became a smoke-free site in January 2022. Read our Smoke-free Environment Policy.
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