Elsewhere is a new opera project led by composer Michael Gallen and is based on the true story of the world’s first Soviet outside the USSR – in the lunatic asylum of a small Irish town – established fleetingly in 1919.

Dealing with themes of utopia, fantasy and madness Elsewhere will explore the other worlds that exist at the frontiers of imagination. The events that inspire this new work took place at a time much like our present, when new and old lines – both ideological and geographic – were being drawn on the political landscape in Ireland and further afield.

Working with a core team that includes director Tom Creed, poet Annemarie Ní Churreain, playwright Dylan Coburn Gray and producer Maura O’Keeffe, Michael is creating a new work that will challenge audiences to encounter the imagined future of a forgotten past.

The development of the opera has been ongoing since early 2018, and included a successful concert performance with full cast and ensemble in November 2019.

The development was funded by Creative Ireland and the Arts Council and supported by Monaghan County Arts Office, Íontas Arts Centre, Castleblayney, Music Generation and the Centre Culturel Irlandais in Paris.

Elsewhere will be rehearsed and performed in Iontas Castleblayney and will premiere at the Abbey Theatre in November 2021 with European premiere at the Opera de Rouen.

Please note that the details of events listed above are provided by the relevant Local Authorities.