Turning the lives of great composers into theatre is a dodgy task – remembering those 1950s films where Grieg or Schubert strike artistic poses at the piano as they pen their latest masterpiece. And acc­ording to the author James Runcie, a more re­cent plan for a biopic about Bach was ditched on the grounds that if it followed hist­ory it would be too dull – Johann Sebastian’s life being overwhelmed by the relentless requirements of serving God and the sung liturgy in Leipzig’s churches.

But unperturb­ed by such precedents, Runcie has prod­uced a Bach-based play with music, The Great Passion. And though written for radio, it has just been staged at the Dartington Festival in Devon. Not unlike a music-loving take on Butlins, Dartington is a gloriously civilised institution where leading musicians come to stay for a week or so, giving performances by night and running courses by day.