As the almost-full moon rose over Alexandra Palace, hundreds of people in soft clothes were drawn to its Great Hall like moths to a flame. For two nights only, the venue was transformed into a giant sleepaway camp for the 10th anniversary performance of composer Max Richter’s SLEEP. An eight-and-half hour live music show running through the night, where audience members get a bed instead of a seat.
It’s only been performed about 26 times, Richter tells me in the run-up to his double bill of all-nighters. Not due to a lack of popularity — it was the first classical album to reach more than one billion streams and now has 2.2 billion.
