A performer in a white shirt and dramatic eye makeup pulls red satin fabric across the foreground, with a flowering tree and dark curtains behind.

Chalke Confidential Forum, Chalke History Festival Site, Broad Chalke2026

Antonia: Behind the Myth of Marie Antoinette

The Production

Liberata Collective’s Antonia: Behind the Myth of Marie Antoinette is an intimate opera-theatre portrait of Marie Antoinette, combining music by composers from her circle with text and Baroque Gesture. Presented at Chalke History Festival, the production explores the relationship between music, politics and the image of the woman behind the myth.

37 photographs in the curated edit

Director: Olivia Doutney
Photography: Steve Gregson

On a small stage, a performer in an ornate pale blue coat kneels and reaches toward a standing performer in an orange skirt, while musicians play behind them.

A performer with flowers in her hair applies eye makeup while looking into a handheld mirror, with soft blue light and blurred costume details nearby.

A bearded performer in a white shirt and red cape reaches one hand outward under bright stage lights, framed by a flowering tree.

Two performers in ornate period costumes gesture playfully toward each other in close-up, with pink blossoms and stage musicians blurred behind them.

A performer in a chainmail-style tunic with a red cross holds a sword horizontally toward the camera and raises one palm in a poised stance.

A performer in a blue period dress lies curled on the stage floor with eyes closed, near a flowering tree under cool blue lighting.

A performer in a floral bodice and orange skirt poses with one finger at her chin while another performer behind her gestures near his face, a sword at his waist.

A performer in a bright blue dress smiles and reaches one arm upward beside a flowering tree, with a seated musician in the background.

A performer in a chainmail-style tunic with a red cross grips a sword in both hands, aiming it diagonally toward the camera with an intense stare.

Two performers in ornate period costumes dance hand in hand beneath a pink blossom tree, with seated musicians playing in the background.

A close-up of a glittering green bird ornament perched among pale pink blossom branches under magenta stage light.

A woman in a vivid blue gown sings with her hands to her chest while a kneeling performer in a dark tunic with a red cross motif looks up at her, with musicians behind a blossom tree.

A performer in a white blouse, green bodice and orange skirt sings with clasped hands beneath a pink blossom tree, where a small green bird ornament sits on a branch.

A pianist plays a grand piano while steadying a tablet displaying marked sheet music against dark stage curtains.

On a petal-strewn stage, a performer with a sword stands beside a prone performer while a woman in an orange skirt reacts near a blossom tree, with musicians seated behind.

A performer in a blue gown with black lace sleeves extends one hand outward with a tense expression, lit closely near the edge of the stage.

A performer in a dark tunic raises a sword and sings with one hand on his chest, while another performer peeks from behind the blossom tree and a violinist plays behind them.

Two performers in period-style dresses lean close and gesture animatedly beneath a blossom tree, their faces brightly lit by pink and blue stage light.

A performer in a white billowing shirt and red cape gazes forward with one hand on his shoulder, framed by dark curtains and pink blossoms.

A performer in a white blouse and orange skirt kneels beside a blossoming tree, holding a basket under cool blue stage lighting.

One performer in chainmail holds a tall staff while another in a white shirt and red cape reaches dramatically toward it in front of pink blossoms.

A performer in an ornate blue dress reaches out with a distressed expression, clutching a white folding fan against a blue curtain backdrop.

Three costumed performers face one another tensely beneath pink blossoms, with the caped performer gripping a staff at the edge of the stage.

A performer raises a sword behind another in a voluminous blue dress, who turns away under a canopy of pink blossoms.

A seated performer in a rich blue dress smiles up while adjusting or fastening the orange skirt of a standing performer in floral costume.

A performer in an ornate blue dress clasps her hands pleadingly beneath a large pink-blossomed tree, lit with blue and magenta tones.

A performer in a floral bodice raises both hands toward the audience while another stands behind with hands to his cheeks near the blossoming tree.

A performer in chainmail lifts a sword high beside a pink-blossomed tree, while other performers and seated violinists are visible across the stage.

A performer in a pale blue, gold-embroidered coat gestures warmly toward another in a blue dress, with a violinist blurred in the background.

A performer in a floral bodice and white blouse reaches toward pale blossom branches, with musicians and dark curtains behind her under blue-purple stage lighting.

A performer in a bright blue period gown leans forward with a startled expression while another performer sings behind her near a flowering tree and seated musicians.

A performer in an ornate pale blue suit kneels and holds the hand of a smiling performer in a vivid blue gown beside a flowering tree on a small stage.

Three costumed performers stand close together under a flowering tree, with one in the foreground holding a hand to her ear and two behind her gesturing as if singing.

A performer in a white tunic holds a knife out to the side while gripping a startled performer in a blue gown in front of a flowering tree.

Close-up of a performer in a white lace-up tunic thrusting a knife forward with an intense expression, against dark curtains and blurred blossoms.

Two performers lie motionless on the stage floor in blue and white costumes, the flowering tree and a sheathed weapon visible behind them.

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