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Black and white image of LPO's Principal Conductor Edward Gardner leading the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Black and white image of LPO's Principal Conductor Edward Gardner leading the London Philharmonic Orchestra.
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Lessons in Love and Violence

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The music

    George Benjamin Lessons in Love and Violence (semi-staged) (90')

The performers

  • Edward Gardner conductor*
  • Dan Ayling director
  • Nathaniel Sullivan King
  • Gyula Orendt Gaveston/Stranger
  • Georgia Jarman Isabel
  • Toby Spence Mortimer
  • James Way Boy/Young King
  • Hannah Sawle Witness 1/Singer 1/Woman 1
  • Joanne Evans Witness 2/Singer 2/Woman 2
  • Andri Björn Róbertsson Witness 3/Madman

A king, a queen; his favourite and her lover.

Power and sex are a dangerous combination, and when the rulers of medieval England played the game of thrones, they either won or they died. The life of King Edward II inspired Marlowe’s classic tragedy, but Sir George Benjamin and Martin Crimp turn it inside out, in an opera that exposes the raw emotions of four characters locked in a deadly embrace. This is Lessons in Love and Violence, and it caused a sensation when it opened at the Royal Opera in 2018. Edward Gardner has assembled a world-beating cast for this one-off concert performance.

*Edward Gardner’s position with the LPO is generously supported by Aud Jebsen.

Please note venue.
There will be no interval in this performance.

Wed 25 Nov 2026, 7.30pm

London, Queen Elizabeth Hall

Tickets from £19.50 (including a transaction fee of £3.50)

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Gardner and the LPO have proved themselves yet again, to be master storytellers, crafting an evening of brilliance, beauty, and emotional depth.

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Featuring

Conductor Edward Gardner, a man with short silver hair, conducting with a baton, black and white photograph.
Edward Gardner, conductor
Soprano Georgia Jarman, a woman with blonde hair, wearing an elegant dress, portrait.
Georgia Jarman, soprano
Soprano Hannah Sawle, a woman with light brown hair, portrait
Hannah Sawle, soprano
Mezzo-soprano Joanne Evans, a woman with red-brown hair, portrait.
Joanne Evans, mezzo-soprano
Tenor James Way, a man with dark hair, artistic portrait.
James Way, tenor
Tenor Toby Spence, a man with brown hair, wearing formal wear, portrait.
Toby Spence, tenor
Baritone Gyula Orendt, a man with dark hair and beard, black and white portrait.
Gyula Orendt, baritone
Bass-baritone Nathaniel Sullivan, a man with short hair, wearing a formal suit, formal portrait.
Nathaniel Sullivan, bass-baritone
Bass-baritone Andri Björn Róbertsson, a man with dark hair, portrait.
Andri Björn Róbertsson, bass-baritone

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