In the ornate Goldsmiths' Hall near St Paul's, one of Britain's finest opera singers, Dame Sarah Connolly, performs an excerpt from a new work. As her powerful voice fills the room, busts of George III and George IV stare on and chandeliers filled with real candles flicker from the ceiling.
It is mainly what you would expect from a concert of Western classical music. Everything except one thing: the words Dame Sarah sings are in Arabic. Goldsmiths' Hall hosted a showcase for the new opera Zarqa Al Yamama, the first major opera produced by Saudi Arabia, and the world's largest major opera in Arabic.
Connolly plays the title role, a woman who can predict the future. The showcase was introduced by Saudi Arabia's Minister of Culture Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan, and also featured singing by Sawsan al-Bahiti, who has been called the "first Saudi opera singer," and London-based soprano Amelia Wawrzon . At a reception down the hall, dates and non-alcoholic wine were served, while journalists from Saudi Arabian television interviewed dignitaries in traditional dress.
Zarqa will open in Riyadh in April, but its makers are hopeful it will return to London soon and are planning an international tour. Connolly explains that she spoke to the Royal Opera House's outgoing music director, Antonio Pappano, about the idea of staging the show, who said it sounded like a "fascinating project".
Connolly is under no illusions about how unusual the opera is. "It's a completely new idea, which is as confusing to many people in Saudi Arabia as it is to people in Britain and elsewhere," she says.
Preparing for this was an "extraordinary challenge". The singer receives two hours of Arabic Zoom lessons every day, which leaves her exhausted. "My goodness," she says, "there are certain sounds that Arabic speakers make in the throat, and they are very difficult for us to use." But after some adjustments with the composer, she is determined to get it right for opening night.
The story continues
Although Connelly does not speak Arabic, she explains that this has been the case for much of her work over the years, in various countries around the world. "I don't speak Czech or Russian, and I sing quite a lot in those languages," she says. "I don't see why this is any different." She continues: "I understand every word I sing, but only because I have been told what it is."
Connolly says she sang part of the new show to her Arabic teacher and he was "shocked" by the sound. "He had never heard Arabic music sung with Western operatic voices," she explains. "I said, 'Is that a good shock or a bad shock?' And he just said, 'I've just never heard anything like that before'." Her teacher explained that not all Saudis will like the show because there are "very religious people who don't want to come and won't like it - but then they don't come anyway." However, they hope that many others will come along and enjoy it.
Based on an ancient story from pre-Islamic Arabia, Zarqa Al Yamama tells the story of a blue-eyed Cassandra-like woman from the Geddes tribe who is blessed with the gift of foresight. Zarqa predicts that a rival army will destroy her people, and the story follows the heroine as she tries to warn her leaders of the danger.
Connolly explains that some parts of Shakespeare's Macbeth may have been inspired by the old story: in it, Zarqa imagines that neighboring countries will invade like a moving forest, just like Birnam Wood. Zarqa is also a bit like the witches of Macbeth and predicts the future.
Like the rest of the opera, the music is a combination of cultures: some harmonic tropes from Arabic music are combined with Western classical music, including contemporary music.
Connolly speaks positively about the Saudi push for art in recent years, part of the Kingdom's Vision 2030 project. "They have put a lot - I mean billions - into educating girls and women and creating employment in schools and colleges," she says. "The fact that they're teaching women in the sciences and language and stuff, I think it's all great," she adds.
Dame Sarah is a strong opponent of Brexit and the restrictions that mean British musicians can only work in the EU for a limited number of days a year. She says that in response, some European music productions have stopped hiring British musicians. The immediate and obvious problem is that the number of roles available to Brits is severely reduced, contributing to additional competition between musicians.
"I will take the work wherever it is, but I absolutely resent that we are limited now. The opportunities, not only from Europe, are decreasing, but also from our own government."
After long periods of little of it, Saudi Arabia is opening up to live music. In 2017, ostensibly 25 years after their last public concert, a host of American country music stars were invited to play, and dance music festivals have since followed.
Classical music is central to the plans: the newly built Maraya Concert Hall in the city of AlUla is the world's largest mirror building, and late last year the Saudi National Orchestra and Choir performed at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York.
There are also art galleries in the works. A Saudi investor paid $450 million for Leonardo Da Vinci's Salvator Mundi in 2017, making it the most expensive painting in the world.
As sports fans know, football has also seen huge investment, with players such as Cristiano Ronaldo moving to Britain and the purchase of Newcastle United - the country will also host the 2034 World Cup. The country has also invested heavily in golf, boxing and Formula 1. During his country's future investment initiative in 2018, leader Prince Mohammed bin Salman famously stated that "the coming renaissance in the next thirty years will be in the Middle East ".
The British government also appears willing to collaborate with Saudi Arabia in the arts. On Wednesday, Culture Secretary Lucy Frazer posted a photo with the Saudi Culture Minister, writing in a caption that she had attended the meeting to "talk about how Britain can continue to work with Saudi Arabia on cultural projects ahead of his meetings with our world leaders. Cultural organizations".
The new opera Zarqa is a truly global collaboration. Italian director Daniele Finzi Pasca previously produced two Winter Olympic ceremonies and collaborated with Cirque du Soleil. The show also features the Czech Philharmonic Choir, the Dresden Sinfoniker Orchestra led by Spaniard Pablo González and Australian composer Lee Bradshaw, who worked closely with Saudi writer and poet Saleh Zamanan to create the script.
The words were then translated into Latinized Arabic and phoneticized, which was no easy feat - as Ivan VukÄ ević, CEO and project manager, explained, calling it one of the most difficult but most rewarding projects he has ever been part of. The cast also consists of Saudi Arabian singers and 60 extras. A new concert hall will be built especially for the premiere in the King Fahad Cultural Center in Riyadh.
Connolly's ambitions for the show aren't too lofty. "My wish is that my Arabic is so good that they don't say, 'Oh my God, what on earth did she try?'" she laughs. "That would be my worst nightmare." However, she is quietly confident of success. "I am a perfectionist. I think they will be amazed by the beauty of it."
Zarqa Al Yamama debuts on April 25 at the newly renovated King Fahad Cultural Center in Riyadh and runs until May 5 for a series of performances. moc.gov.sa
