The SNOW CHILD

“The Snow Child” is the second opera written by Eric Wetherell and is scheduled for its first performance in September 2014 in Bristol. The opera is based on a book of the same name by an American author, Eowyn Ivey, and, although derived originally from a Russian folk tale, it is set in Alaska in the 1920s.

 

Mabel and Jack have moved from their farm in Pennsylvania to the wilds of Alaska, in the vain hope that this will be a new beginning, a way of recovering from the unhappiness of a stillbirth. The move seems to have been a terrible mistake and Mabel is depressed, but a mysterious girl, Faina, appears on the scene and a friendship develops that fulfils a maternal role for Mabel. Their neighbours, Esther and George, turn out to be wonderfully supportive and it doesn’t take long for their son Garrett to be captivated by Faina, this strange girl. She is certainly a child of the snow and cannot be confined to the interior of a warm log cabin. Is she mortal or is she spirit?

 

This is a question that the audience must decide for themselves.