British mezzo-soprano Sarah Walker sings the lead role of Queen Elizabeth I in this memorable production of Benjamin Britten's "Gloriana," recorded live in 1984 at the London Coliseum. Based on Lytton Strachey's &NFi;Elizabeth and Essex&NFi_;, the opera traces the tragic downfall of the charismatic Earl of Essex (Anthony Rolfe Johnson), who takes advantage of his position as the queen's favorite subject and ultimately brings about his own demise.