Each screening, shown in stunning high definition in the comfort of an Empire Cinemas auditorium, transports the viewer to experience the live recorded or live streamed event from the comfort of their local cinema.
Highlights in this month’s Empire Extra calendar include the witty and vibrant interpretation of Cinderella by the Australian ballet, the Royal Opera House’s much anticipated performance of Anastasia and festive favourites performed by the Johan Strauss orchestra with Andre Rieu (Andre Rieu: Christmas With Andre).
ROH – Anastasia (LIVE)
Released 2 November
Ticket Link: http://bit.ly/1TuEAnl
An identity in crisis; a country in revolution. Anastasia is a ballet about one of the great historical mysteries of the 20th century, only recently solved. At the height of the Russian Revolution the royal family were executed, but afterwards a young woman appeared – apparently a surviving royal princess, the Grand Duchess Anastasia. Known as ‘Anna Anderson’, she couldn’t remember her past and she was presumed to be an imposter. Many wanted to forget the massacre and the Revolution; many believed, or hoped, that a princess could have survived, a remnant of the old world.
One of Kenneth MacMillan’s first creations on becoming Director of The Royal Ballet in 1970, Anastasia is a dramatic and haunting exploration of Anna’s nightmare of memory and identity. To music by Tchaikovsky and Martinù, we follow the events leading to the murder of a family, and Anna’s confused dreams – or memories. A powerful, psychological challenge for the principal ballerina, this is a rare opportunity to see a landmark ballet by a major choreographer.
ROH Les Contes D’Hoffman (LIVE)
Released 15 November
Ticket Link: http://bit.ly/1UBPNat
The Royal Opera’s lavish production of Les Contes d’Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann), Offenbach’s masterpiece, is a favourite with audiences. Created by Academy Award-winning film director John Schlesinger, this production brings alive a 19th-century world of romance, comedy, mystery and menace. At the centre of these extraordinary tales of clockwork dolls, magical glasses, ghostly voices and sensual courtesans is the vivid imagination of the drunken Romantic poet Hoffmann. Charismatic young tenor Vittorio Grigolo is Hoffmann – compelled to tell the story of his lovers who, he believes, have all been stolen by a succession of arch villains. Superb baritone Thomas Hampson performs all four villains. The music includes the famous ‘Barcarolle’ and the stunning showpiece numbers are perfect vehicles for the vocal virtuosity of Sofia Fomina as the clockwork doll Olympia, Christine Rice as the courtesan Giulietta, and Sonya Yoncheva as Hoffmann’s last love Antonia.
Alan Bennett’s Diaries Live
Released 16 November
Ticket Link: http://bit.ly/2dmzmzm
This unmissable live event will take a candid look into the mind of Alan Bennett, Britain’s best-loved writer, who, at 82, shows no signs of slowing down. The event will include a screening of Alan Bennett’s Diaries, a new film about the writer, followed by an exclusive Q&A with Alan Bennett from his local community library in Primrose Hill. Inspired by his acerbic and often hilarious diaries, the film shows Alan as he’s never been seen before – following him to New York, the scene of his early triumph in Beyond The Fringe, to accept an award from the city’s Public Library; to Shepherd’s Bush to record an episode of Private Passions for Radio 3 and open up about the importance of music in his life; to his local community-run library in Primrose Hill, which, he despairs, some would rather see turned into a Pizza Hut; to the East Coast railway line, which he’d like to see renationalised, and the village in Yorkshire he calls home. Intimate encounters, filmed over the course of a year, reveal a writer who is bemused by his own popularity and is still as angry and irreverent in his 80s as he was in his 20s.
Andre Rieu: Christmas With Andre
Released 19 November
Ticket Link: http://bit.ly/2deu8SU
André Rieu: Christmas With André - a festive celebration, featuring a never before seen 90 minute recorded Christmas concert, packed with all the favourites including Hallelujah, Jingle Bells, White Christmas & many more performed by André and his famous Johann Strauss Orchestra along with his sopranos and tenors. As an exclusive for cinema audiences, André will be inviting his fans to his hometown for a live intimate tour of Maastricht’s magical Christmas highlights, as well as participating in a Q&A with CinemaLive host Charlotte Hawkins where ‘The King of Waltz’ will answer questions submitted by cinema audiences.
The Australian Ballet - Cinderella
Released 23 November
Ticket Link: http://bit.ly/2dmARh6
Witty, vibrant, glamorous and romantic, Alexei Ratmansky’s Cinderella will sweep you off your feet as this stunning production comes to cinemas. As Cinderella works to support her stepmother and sisters, she watches as they prepare for a magnificent ball being held by the Prince of the land, knowing that they will not permit her to attend. When they leave, she imagines herself dancing at the ball in a beautiful gown wishing that she could attend. The Fairy Godmother takes pity on her and visits Cinderella to transform her rags into a ball gown, transporting her to the ball and warning her that the magic will vanish at Midnight. At the ball Cinderella meets the Prince and it is love at first sight - but at the strike of twelve midnight she runs from the ballroom leaving her slipper behind. Travelling the land, the Prince searches for his lost true love, and the moment that Cinderella fits the slipper they live happily ever after.
Tristan Und Isolde – Teatro Dell’Opera Live 2016
Released 27 November
Ticket Link: http://bit.ly/2e3Js6A
“The Teatro dell’Opera di Roma’s 2016/2017 season will open with Richard Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde, conducted by Daniele Gatti and directed by Pierre Audi. The work is a co-production of the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, the Theìâtre des Champs-Eìlyseìes in Paris and the De Nationale Opera in Amsterdam and the Municipal Theater in Sao Paulo. Tristan und Isolde draws on the Celtic legend of Tristan and Iseult and explores the theme of eternal love through sublime music. Once described by Richard Wagner as ‘the most audacious and original work of my life,’ Tristan und Isolde is a story of illicit love told through Wagner’s musical innovations, where the use of harmony and depiction of extreme emotions have in uenced generations of artists. An epic drama told on a grand scale, Tristan und Isolde will be an unforgettable highlight of the 2016/2017 All’Opera Season. From the opening bars of the prelude with its famous Tristan chord, Wagner’s powerful opera is one of the most signifcant pieces in the repertoire and Daniele Gatti is one of the few directors who can can truly claim to follow in the great Italian tradition of Toscanini as Tristan und Isolde marks his debut at the Teatro dell’Opera in Rome.”
Jon Nutton, Marketing Director of Empire Cinemas said, “November is a fantastic month for Empire Extra, from the Australian Ballet to Wagner’s Tristan Und Isolde and kicking off the festive season with Andre Rieu, there’s something for all the family. We’re proud to bring another month of fantastic content to audiences across the country.”
For further ticketing information visit www.empirecinemas.co.uk or call 08714 714 714.