19-21 Cecil Court, London WC2N 4EZ, UK
Monday - Sunday 11.00 - 18.30
19 - 21 Cecil Court
London, WC2N 4EZ
Tel. 020 7836 2182
Rilke's Book of Hours - Robert Saxton
Fri, 17 Nov
|London
Join Robert Saxton for a presentation of his new interpretation of Rainer Maria Rilke’s classic work of profound spiritual poetry "The Book of Hours".
Time & Location
17 Nov 2023, 17:30
London, 19-21 Cecil Ct, London WC2N 4EZ, UK
About the event
I’m living at the far edge of the century. A tremendous leaf is about to turn, which God, you and I have scribbled on. I feel the wind that stirs it, teasingly.
I love the inviting blank of the empty page – unspoiled, a place to record marvellous things. Silently the Fates, after taking soundings, look at each other; then dip their pens in rage.
Rilke’s earliest masterpiece is compelling, outspoken, impassioned, strange and wholly alive. It catches the reader off-guard with surprises and frissons of all kinds. Varied and restless, it presents a kaleidoscopic picture of the poet’s complex and shifting relationship with God, which at times feels like a love affair. Key themes include doubt, desire, art, nature, time, nothingness, pilgrimage, the city, poverty and death. All this is set within a vibrant world, peopled by memorable characters, including a young monk resisting the temptations of the flesh, Michelangelo, Botticelli, the Virgin Mary, St Francis, farmers, monks and a sinister nightwatchman.
Saxton’s version of Rilke’s The Book of Hours offers a well-judged balance of imaginative interpretation and conscientious fidelity.
Please note that the original date for this event has now been moved forward to 17th November!