Laurence Kilsby
'If you do not know him yet, remember the name of the British tenor Laurence Kilsby. The power of his dedication is matched by the splendor of his timbre.' This cannot be said better than Olivier Bellamy did in Le Point . Once you have experienced Kilsby, you cannot get the voice of his silky-smooth tenor out of your ears. The British tenor is back at the Concertgebouw, together with pianist Ella O'Neill. Kilsby released his debut CD with her: Awakenings . Incidentally, the song repertoire is not the only area in which he excels; Kilsby also feels at home in opera, oratorio, and concerts with orchestra. Tonight, he and O'Neill present a recital program centered on The Little Mermaid .
The Little Mermaid
Two hundred years after the release of The Little Mermaid , Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale, tenor Laurence Kilsby and pianist Ella O'Neill reintroduce her to you in a colorful program. A young mermaid lives deep in the sea with her father, the King of the Sea, and her sisters. At fifteen, she is allowed to go to the surface of the sea for the first time, where she saves a prince from drowning and falls in love with him. To be with the prince, she makes a pact with the sea witch: she trades her beautiful voice for human legs. But: if the prince marries someone else, she will die and dissolve into the sea. And alas: the prince marries someone else, and the mermaid chooses sacrifice. She does not die completely, but transforms into a spirit who must perform good deeds to earn an immortal soul. In the fantastic Disney film, all is well that ends well: Ariel and the prince live happily ever after.