The Turn of the Screw (opera) The Turn of the Screw (opera) The Turn of the Screw is a 20th-century English chamber opera composed by Benjamin Britten with a libretto by Myfanwy Piper, "wife of the artist John Piper, who had been a friend of the composer since 1935 and had provided designs for several of the operas". The libretto is based on the novella "The Turn of the Screw" by Henry James. The opera was commissioned by the Venice Biennale and given its world premiere on 14 September 1954, at the Teatro La Fenice, Venice. The original recording was made during that year, with the
The Sense of an Ending It is perhaps his greatest achievement that, in his hands, the unknowable does not mean the implausible." "The Guardian's" Justine Jordan said "With its patterns and repetitions, scrutinising its own workings from every possible angle, the novella becomes a highly wrought meditation on ageing, memory and regret." Boyd Tonkin from "The Independent" said "The Sense of an Ending" is "A slow burn, measured but suspenseful, this compact novel makes every slyly crafted sentence count." Anita Brookner, writing for "The Daily Telegraph", said the novel is not a thriller, but a tragedy, which resembles Henry James's "The Turn of the Screw".