Written in 1954, The Turn of the Screw is the last of Benjamin Britten’s chamber operas, based on the gothic horror novella of the same title. A sheltered young governess is sent to care for two children in a country house called Bly. At first, her new post seems perfect--the children, Miles and Flora, are positively angelic, and the estate is beautiful. Soon, however, the governess becomes suspicious as apparitions of a man and a woman begin to appear around the house and the grounds. The housekeeper informs her that they are the ghosts of Quint, the manservant, and Miss Jessel, the former governess. As the governess feels an increasing sense of evil surrounding the house, the ghosts appear more often and ever closer to the children, intending to possess them as the governess tries desperately to protect her young charges. A tale of the struggle of good and evil, the corruption of innocence, and the supernatural, The Turn of the Screw is a terrifying and brilliantly composed thriller that has been called one of the most dramatically compelling British operas of all time.
The Turn of the Screw guide sections
