Cecilia McDowall

Programme notes


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King Leo (1993)
an eco musical or cantata
Text: Sarah Dawson
7 solo parts, chorus from 20 upwards. Three different instrumentations - piano, clarinet and percussion, or flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano and percussion or for full orchestra
duration: 60' as a musical, 45
Gemini Publications
Commissioned by Combe Bank School
First performance March 1993
soloists, chorus and band from Combe Bank School, conducted by Georgina Roberts
Combe Bank School, Kent
Featured on Blue Peter
Review available
Further information available

Allusions to Shakespeare's King Lear are not coincidental.

There's been a bungle in the jungle! King Leo is getting old; his sight is not as good as it was and his stamina is declining. He makes the decision to take a sabbatical from his rainforest responsibilities. What he needs is a place in the sun to rejuvenate and revitalise. He divides his kingdom between Panther, honourable but a bit too upfront with the truth, and Tiger, a rampant rascal who is out to make a fast buck. Tiger reveals a penchant for property development by cutting down the forest and selling to the highest bidder. Naturally, the animals are wild with worry.

Will Tiger make the take-over total or will Panther save the day, the forest and the planet ..?