Classical review

The Second Violinist

Donnacha Dennehy and Enda Walsh

O’Reilly Theatre, October 8

Irish composer Donnacha Dennehy doesn’t do ordinary and, if he did, this opera certainly wouldn’t qualify. The Second Violinist is a pulverising plunge into the heart of darkness of a freelance violinist in the throes of a psychotic meltdown. All of this is against the backdrop of a stage-wide video screen that projects frightening flashbacks, such as a lion savaging a ...