Damon Albarn to kick off new opera tonight

The former Blur frontman has written the new opera 'Doctor Dee', a re-enactment of the life of 16th century scientist John Dee, and while Damon will perform 10 solo songs in the show - which opens at Manchester's Palace Theatre tonight (01.07.11) - he doesn't believe Sting would be interested in taking over from him.

He said: "There's no reason why someone else shouldn't sing these songs, but at the moment I'm planning to appear at all the performances. I want to be directly involved: the songs are very personal, they come from the heart.

"[However] I don't think Sting would want to sing anything I've written."

The opera is based heavily on John Dee's life as a forward-thinker of his time, aiding the Navy in developing new technology but also having dealings with the occult and while he is excited about the setting, Damon can't help making some last minute changes.

He told Britain's Daily Telegraph: "The action will take place on three levels, representing different spheres of existence.

"Down in the pit of hell, the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra plays. On stage is the earth, where Dee will be impersonated by that brilliant actor Bertie Carvel, he doesn't sing, and he doesn't say much, he's too busy thinking and reading.

"This feels like the most important thing I've ever done. I've gone a lot farther down the line than last time [the pseudo-Chinese opera Monkey] and there's a whole lifetime ahead at it/ I'm in love with the whole process of making opera.

'Like' our Award Winning facebook page and be entered into a draw to win 1000 CDs including rare, signed and promotional copies here!