A Victorian superstar is brought to life

‘An Audience with Dame Clara Butt’ tells the story of a Victorian superstar who began her career in Bristol. A blue plaque marks the house in Bellevue Road, Totterdown, where she lived as a child in the 1880s.
Clara was educated at South Bristol High School, where her singing talent was recognised. She sang in churches and halls across the city before winning international acclaim. Standing at over six feet tall, and with a voice that some said could be heard across the channel, Clara Butt was an imposing figure.
Her story will be told at The Thunderbolt on May 2nd April. The 45-minute performance includes music by Elgar and Saint-Saens and imagined conversations with Dame Clara’s contemporaries and an opportunity for the audience to join in with her ‘smash hits’, Land of Hope and Glory and Rule Britannia.
Alexandra Denman, who sings and directs with Bristol Opera and regularly presents the Evening Post Christmas Concert at the Colston Hall, will be taking the lead role.
She will be accompanied by pianist John Bowen and actor Ian Bouncer, who plays a number of characters including Queen Victoria and composer Edward Elgar.
An exhibition about the contralto will also be on show.