HILDEGARD VON BINGEN
Living Light: Visions of an Abbess
An immersive journey through sacred sounds.
11th, 12th, 14th, 15th August 2026
St. Mary the Virgin Church, Waterperry Gardens
Staged in the intimate church at Waterperry, this immersive performance weaves Hildegard von Bingen’s music and words, inviting audiences into a luminous world of sound, spirituality, and visionary imagination.
Living Light: Visions of an Abbess explores the inner world of Hildegard von Bingen through the visions that shaped her life and art. She experienced these revelations as intense, multi-sensory spiritual encounters, moments of colour, sound, and presence from which her extraordinary creativity flowed. At the heart of these visions was a radiant divine force she named Lux Vivens, the Living Light, inspiring music born directly from illumination.
Credits
Music by Hildegard von Bingen.
Timings
Performance starts at 5pm. Approx finish 5:25pm.
Tickets
Tickets start at £15, with a small booking fee.
Under 35s Tickets at £15, Under 16s at £10, Benefit Holder/NHS Blue Light Tickets go free.
Language
Sung in both Latin and English.
General Booking opens 31st March.
Creative Team
Director | Rebecca Meltzer
Cast
To be announced.
The Music
Hildegard of Bingen (c. 1098–1179) stands as one of the most extraordinary figures of the High Middle Ages: a Benedictine abbess, visionary mystic, and prolific polymath, as well as poet, medical practitioner, and of course, one of the medieval world’s most prolific and important composers. Born into a noble Rhineland family, she experienced vivid visions from childhood and quickly entered religious orders. Highly regarded by popes, saints, and princes, she founded numerous convents and was active well into her 80s.
Her music takes centre stage today, in the perfect setting of St Mary’s Church at Waterperry – remarkably, parts of the building date to around 1143, when Hildegard was at the peak of her powers. The music you will hear is instantly arresting: glorious, soaring lines for solo soprano voice weave mesmerising patterns as they enact Hildegard’s latin poetry, by turns rapturous, serene, and erotic.
Though composed almost 1000 years ago her music can seem strikingly modern – and its haunting twists and turns have a rare beauty that almost no other music shares..
FAQs
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The performances of Living Light run for approximately 25 minutes.
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Living Light: Visions of an Abbess explores the inner world of Hildegard von Bingen through the visions that shaped her life and art. She experienced these revelations as intense, multi-sensory spiritual encounters, moments of colour, sound, and presence from which her extraordinary creativity flowed. At the heart of these visions was a radiant divine force she named Lux Vivens, the Living Light, inspiring music born directly from illumination.
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Absolutely!
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Living Light is performed in English, with no surtitles.
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The production takes place in St Mary the Virgin Church at Waterperry Gardens.
