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The Progress of the Soul of Lizzie Calvin

Glenda Jackson plays the soul of Lizzie Calvin in Michael Symmons Roberts's modern version of John Donne's unfinished poem The Progress of the Soul. Produced in binaural sound.

THE PROGRESS OF THE SOUL OF LIZZIE CALVIN

In poet John Donne's great unfinished work of the same name , he plays with the ancient idea of the transmigration of souls, that a spirit might be reincarnated in many different lives. For contemporary poet Michael Symmons Roberts, the idea of making a new 'Progress of the Soul' has long been an ambition. Both poets have serious fun with this idea, imagining a soul passing, dissatisfied with each successive form of life, through a fantastical range of insects, plants, fish, animals and on, trying to reach its ultimate fulfilment as a human being.
The soul , played by Glenda Jackson is the driving voice of the drama - key narrator and storyteller. Beginning in the body of Lizzie Calvin, a minister in waiting , the soul journeys through different forms of life, from a flea on a dogs back to a mandrake . This is a new radio poem that is irreverent and serious, lyrical and disturbing, witty and heart breaking . It ultimately questions the idea of the soul, what its relevance is in contemporary society .

Written by Michael Symmons Roberts
Sound producer Steve Brooke
Directed in Salford by Susan Roberts.

44 minutes

Last on

Tue 23 Apr 2019 14:15

Credits

Role Contributor
The Soul Glenda Jackson
Lizzie Deborah McAndrew
Flea Mark Heap
Chef Mark Heap
Dog Louis Labovitch
Seagull Louis Labovitch
Songbird Angela Lonsdale
Rat Angela Lonsdale
Girl Angela Lonsdale
Mandrake Russell Dixon
Whale Russell Dixon
Writer Michael Symmons Roberts
Director Susan Roberts

Broadcasts

  • Wed 26 Apr 2017 14:15
  • Tue 23 Apr 2019 14:15

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