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HotBox Studios worked with director Wayne McGregor in producing animation for Henry Purcell's Opera 'Dido and Aeneas'. The animated unicorn sequence is shown at the end of the opera as a representation of the passing from one world to the next.

The first presentation of 'Dido and Aeneas' directed by Wayne McGregor was at Teatro alla Scala (Milan, Italy) on the 28th June 2006 with further performances on the 4th, 6th, 8th, 12th, 14th, 17th, 19th - July 2006.

The second presentation a double bill - Purcell's Dido and Aeneas and Handel's Acis and Galatea - two great works of British Baroque opera in new interpretations by Wayne McGregor, Resident Choreographer of The Royal Ballet, make for a very special evening with The Royal Opera in collaboration with The Royal Ballet.

England's oldest opera - Henry Purcell's 'Dido and Aeneas' - directed by Wayne McGregor, opens with Handel's Acis and Galatea at London's Royal Opera House on Tuesday 31^st March 2009. Following the opening night will be six further performances in April: Friday 3rd, Wed 8th, Sat 11th, Wed 15th, Sat 18th, Mon 20th.

BBC 4 TV will broadcast Acis and Galatea on Friday 15 May and Dido and Aeneas on Friday 22 May;BBC Radio 3 will broadcast Dido and Aeneas and Acis and Galatea on Saturday 20 June.

'Dido and Aeneas' was first performed in 1689, at a girl's school in Chelsea, London. The narrative for Dido and Aeneas was adapted from part of the Aeneid by Virgil. Dido, Queen of Carthage, falls in love with Aeneas, who has landed in Carthage after fleeing from Troy after defeat in the Trojan War. However, the destructive witches living near Carthage who despise Dido, remind Aeneas that he is fated to found the Roman Empire. Aeneas leaves Dido, heartbroken Dido kills herself.

From the Royal Opera House website:

To both, McGregor brings his individual and acclaimed approach to the fusion of music and movement in settings of richly layered design and atmospheric lighting. Purcell's Dido and Aeneas contrasts musically and dramatically the supernatural with personal tragedy - there are the witches who delight in destruction, but at the heart is Dido, Queen of Carthage, whose Lament is one of the most famous and beautiful pieces of English opera. The pastoral mood of Handel's Acis and Galatea also turns dark as the eponymous loves are threatened by the monster Polyphemus, but its succession of arias and choruses show its unique charm. With Christopher Hogwood conducting the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and soloists including Sarah Connolly as Dido, this programme will have an especially rich musical interpretation.

Royal Opera House credits:

Conductor: Christopher Hogwood

Choreography: Wayne McGregor

Director: Wayne McGregor

Music: Henry Purcell

Animation: Mark Hatchard of HotBox Studios

From the Teatro alla Scala website:

The only 17th century opera of this Season, which covers more than four hundred years of opera (even if in reality it spans five different centuries, from the 17th to 21st one), is Henry Purcell's Dido and Aeneas (1689), where the great English composer prophetically chose the touching subject destined to become the one most set-to-music in the subsequent version by Metastasio.

The direction of the opera, entrusted to a choreographer, is livened up by a spirit of dance accompanying the whole staging. Moreover, the opera - in this form of "opera-ballet" - is opened by a prologue based on a suite of loose pieces by Purcell;this prologue, wholly danced as well, takes the place of the original lost one. The novelty of this performance is ensured by the presence of an expert of ancient music like Christopher Hogwood.

Teatro alla Scala credits:

Conductor: Christopher Hogwood

Direction: Wayne McGregor

Scenes: Hildegard Bechtler

Costumes: Fotini Dimou

Lighting Design: Lucy Carter

Animation: Mark Hatchard of HotBox Studios