In 2014 Ayrshire Opera Experience, in association with the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, made their debut performing a Scots Language version of Charpentier's Action.

 

Actéon in Scots is reworking of the chamber opera Actéon by one of the most important French composers of his generation, Marc-Antoine Charpentier. This ground-breaking piece merges Scots language with French baroque opera and Greek mythology.

 

Actéon in Scots Language is the brainchild of Tenor David Douglas, who had the idea to produce a new version of the opera in Ayrshire (Ayrshire Opera) incorporating a mixture of community and professional singers, who learn the piece over six days in the form of a course. Ayrshire Opera are delighted to enable Perthshire Opera in continuing this new and exciting work.  Opera is often perceived as a elitist art form while the Scots language is often looked down upon. This production treats Scots language with the same care and respect as any other Language. It's a completely new experience for both the cast and the audience. The Robert Burns Birthplace museums learning manager Chris Waddell provided the translation using a mix of Scots and English that would have been used by Burns and drawn from an Ayrshire Dialect.