Barbara Hannigan conducts, presents and sings Poulenc’s opera La voix humaine: a heart, a soul and a whole human life, in one devastating telephone call.
‘Just a look could change everything … but with this telephone between us, what’s done is done. Don’t worry – no-one ever tries to kill themselves twice’. Alone in her bedroom, a young woman makes a call. We don’t know who she’s calling, or the story that has brought her to stake everything on a single shaky connection – but as the one-sided conversation unfolds, we find ourselves living every tear, every memory and every bitter, desperate hope.
Hannigan does all this with the added element of live video on the big screen: just uncompromising emotion, and souls stripped bare.
La voix humaine turns a monologue by Jean Cocteau into a drama that burns itself into your memory. Who better to take the central role than Barbara Hannigan, a performer who charges everything she performs with the immediacy and honesty of life itself?
Programme
Sung in French with English surtitles
Performers
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Booking fees
£4 booking fee per online/phone transaction.
No fee when tickets are booked in person.
Booking fees are per transaction and not per ticket. If your booking contains several events the highest booking fee will apply. The booking fee may be reduced on certain events. Members do not pay booking fees.
Barbican Hall
Location
The Barbican Hall is located within the main Barbican building. Head to Level G and follow the signs to find your seating level.
Address
Barbican Centre
Silk Street, London
EC2Y 8DS
Public transport
The Barbican is widely accessible by bus, tube, train and by foot or bicycle. Plan your journey and find more route information in ‘Your Visit’ or book your car parking space in advance.
We’ve plenty of places for you to relax and replenish, from coffee and cake to wood-fired pizzas and full pre-theatre menus
Mobility
Spaces for wheelchair users in row U at the rear of the stalls (up to sixteen, depth of row 180cm) and the back row of the circle (four), both with fold-down companion seats. Some seats in row S of the stalls for people with very limited mobility.
Assistance dogs
Assistance dogs may be taken into the concert hall where there are a limited number of suitable seats in row G of the stalls. If you prefer, you may leave your dog with a member of the cloakroom staff during the performance.
Hearing facility
There is an induction loop in the concert hall. You can use this by adjusting your hearing aid to the ‘T’ setting.
Free large-print programmes
These are available for most of our concerts. Please contact [email protected] at least a week beforehand, to prebook a large-print programmme.
For more access information, please visit our Accessibility section.