LIBERATA COLLECTIVE – Antonia: Beyond the Myth of Marie Antoinette

Returning after their beautiful production of Handel’s opera Orlando in 2024, baroque movement and music specialists, the Liberata Collective, bring us a programme built around the life and times of Marie Antoinette, wife of the ill-fated King of France, Louis XVI (as part of our French Icons season).

Born an archduchess of Austria, Maria Antonia Josefa Johanna was the youngest daughter of Empress Maria Theresa and Emperor Francis I of the Holy Roman Empire. This staged recital – in full period costume and wigs – explores the real woman behind the myth of Queen Marie.

Music by Gluck, Piccinni, Bologne, Sacchini and others will be interwoven with the Queen’s own letters, casting an unflattering eye on French society’s treatment of women in the public eye…

Video: Learn more about baroque gesture behind the scenes of Liberata Collective’s 2024 production of Handel’s Orlando.

Event Sponsor: Close Friends

We offer a wide range of discounts, including concessions for students, benefits recipients, carers/essential companions, and Under 30s, plus special standby rates for students and under‑25s (ID required). Family pricing applies to selected events. For further details please see Booking Information | Lichfield Festival or ask our Box Office team.