Elegies: Two Monologues from Ricochet Theatre at Drayton Arms Theatre

Sandy du Soleil

​A lifelong lover of music and performance, Sandy became enamoured with opera in his late-teens after stumbling upon a performance of ‘Glitter and be Gay’ from Bernstein’s Candide. Upon discovering his countertenor voice, Sandy has since worked under the supervision of internationally acclaimed tenor and actor Kevin West to study the art of recital, specialising in lieder. In 2018, Sandy made his professional debut in Paris in ‘Les Heures Bleues’ where he played La Muse, performing music by Erik Satie. Sandy continues to study operatic recital but has recently embarked on a journey of employing his chest register for cabaret and jazz performance and is thoroughly enjoying the exploration of both voices!

Xabier Casán

Xabier is a dedicated and passionate pianist and piano/music theory teacher originally from the north of Spain, but now living and working in London. He began his professional piano studies at the Conservatoire "Juan Crisóstomo de Arriaga" in Bilbao, followed by the renowned Conservatoire "Musikene" in San Sebastián for 5 years, studying under Gustavo Díaz-Jerez and reaching Grado Superior. He followed this with a Masters in Musical Interpretation and Research at VIU in Valencia under Eugen Indic and Francisco Escoda Padrón at the same time as doing a post-graduate in Contemporary Music at CSMA in Zaragoza with Ricardo Descalzo, Nicolás Hodges, Alberto Rosado and Yukiko Sugawara. Following this, he spent three years studying classical and jazz singing at the Conservatoire "Francisco Escudero" in San Sebastián and currently is a member of the London Philharmonic Choir. Xabier has performed in numerous concerts and recitals throughout the Basque Country, Spain and France, including in the Palacio Euskalduna, the Guggenheim in Bilbao and in the Principal and Victoria Eugenia theatres in San Sebastián. He has also performed in chamber groups and various orchestras. In London, he has performed at the Royal Albert Hall (the Proms) and at the Royal Festival Hall with the London Philharmonic Choir.