Eight Days – The last days of Mary, Queen of Scots

19:00-19:45, Wednesday 9th September 2026

The Cockpit

Composer & MD: Louis Mander

Librettist & Producer: Louisa Petaï

Voice Actor/Dramaturg: Kieran Rayner

Production Assistant: Olga Lavant

Production Assistant: Dominic Bujega-Lane

Mary, Queen of Scots: Louisa Petaï

1st February 1587. Mary, Queen of Scots, after twenty years of captivity, still remains imprisoned in Fotheringhay castle.

Unbeknownst to her, Queen Elizabeth I – her own cousin – has signed her death warrant.

She has only eight days left to live.

Haunted by her past and still protesting her innocence, in these final eight days Mary is confronted by the consequences of her decisions, grappling with her inner demons whilst remaining devoted to her faith.

As she braces herself for death, Mary, still a queen, deliberately sows the seeds for her own enduring legacy as martyr and icon.

In her end was truly her beginning.

Combining evocative music by Louis Mander and a powerful libretto by Louisa Petaï, Eight Days is a one-woman opera which draws upon contemporary historical accounts and uses Mary’s own words above all.