Have you ever wondered how Handel’s own audiences would have experienced his operas? Liberata Collective endeavours to recreate this experience for modern audiences: using period instruments, providing printed libretti, and most crucially, performing in the art of Baroque Gesture (rarely seen on stages since that period). The complex plot of Orlando, one of Handel’s most vibrant and experimental works, is interpreted through a series of expressive movements, in the style that Handel’s own singers would have performed.

Supported by the Fidelio Trust for this Lichfield performance, the exciting young singers of Liberata Collective join forces with the dynamic and innovative musicians of Ensemble Hesperi (Festival visitors in 2019) playing on period instruments. Musical Director and highly-respected historical performance expert Adrian Butterfield directs the opera from the violin.