The Royal Opera House 2021-2022 opera season

The Royal Opera Season will open with a new production of Verdi's Rigoletto, directed by Oliver Mears – his first production since becoming The Royal Opera's Director of Opera in 2017. This new production will receive its premiere in September 2021, with Royal Opera Music Director Antonio Pappano conducting the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House. In its 75th year, The Royal Opera strengthens its commitment to the works of Benjamin Britten, George Frideric Handel and Leoš Janáček with new productions of Peter Grimes, Theodora and the long-awaited premiere of Jenůfa. Also given its premiere this Season is a new production of Camille Saint-Saëns's grand-opera Samson et Dalila, while international and British talent are cast in repertory favourites including Tosca, La traviata and Così fan tutte.

The Linbury Theatre presents two opera world premieres:  Laura Bowler's The Blue Woman, directed by Katie Mitchell, and Wolf Witch Giant Fairy – a magical new family show in collaboration with Little Bulb opening in time for Christmas. Spring 2022 will see director Adele Thomas bring Vivaldi's Bajazet to life in a new production – the first Vivaldi opera to be staged at the Royal Opera House. In June 2022 Tom Coult's Violet will be presented off site at the Hackney Empire with co-producers Music Theatre Wales and Britten Pears Arts.

Opera Season 2021-2022

Rigoletto

13–29 September 2021 / 18 February–12 March 2022   

Main Stage

Music Giuseppe Verdi

The Season opens with a new production of Verdi's Rigoletto, directed by Oliver Mears – his first as Director of The Royal Opera. This production sees Verdi's masterpiece as a modern morality play that pits power against innocence, beauty against ugliness, in a pitiless world of luxurious decadence, corruption and social decay. Antonio Pappano and Paul Wynne Griffiths conduct in the Autumn, with Carlos Álvarez in the title role alongside Lisette Oropesa and Liparit Avetisyan. In February, Stefano Montanari conducts a cast that includes Luca Salsi, Rosa Feola and Javier Camarena.

Creative Team

• Conductors ANTONIO PAPPANO/PAUL WYNNE GRIFFITHS/STEFANO MONTANARI
• Director OLIVER MEARS
• Set designer SIMON LIMA HOLDSWORTH
• Costume designer ILONA KARAS
• Lighting designer FABIANA PICCIOLI
• Movement director ANNA MORRISSEY

Cast

• Rigoletto CARLOS ÁLVAREZ/LUCA SALSI
• Duke of Mantua LIPARIT AVETISYAN/JAVIER CAMARENA
• Gilda LISETTE OROPESA/ROSA FEOLA
• Sparafucile ANDREA MASTRONI/EVGENY STAVINSKY
• Maddalena RAMONA ZAHARIA/AIGUL AKHMETSHINA
• Count Monterone ERIC GREENE/PHILLIP RHODES
• Giovanna KSENIIA NIKOLAIEVA
• Marullo DOMINIC SEDGWICK/GERMÁN E. ALCÁNTARA
• Borsa EGOR ZHURAVSKII
• Count Ceprano BLAISE MALABA

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

The Magic Flute

15 September–7 October 2021

The Royal Opera

Main Stage

Music Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

David McVicar's spectacular production of Mozart's comic opera returns for its tenth revival on the Royal Opera House Main Stage, transporting you to a fantastical world of dancing animals, flying machines and starry skies. This spellbinding setting provides a wonderful backdrop for Mozart's kaleidoscopic score. McVicar's production embraces both the seriousness and the comedy of Mozart's opera, telling a timeless story of one man's search for wisdom and virtue. With an enduring love story at its heart, complex villains and an unforgettable comic sidekick in Papageno, The Magic Flute weaves an enchanting tale from start to finish.

Creative Team

• Conductors: HARTMUT HAENCHEN/RICHARD HETHERINGTON
• Director DAVID MCVICAR
• Designer JOHN MACFARLANE
• Lighting designer PAULE CONSTABLE
• Movement director LEAH HAUSMAN

Cast

• Tamino DANIEL BEHLE/BERNARD RICHTER
• Pamina SALOME JICIA/CHRISTINA GANSCH
• Papageno HUW MONTAGUE RENDALL/PETER KELLNER
• Queen of the Night BRENDA RAE/KATHRYN LEWEK
• Sarastro KRZYSZTOF BĄCZYK/JAMES PLATT
• Monostatos MICHAEL COLVIN/PETER HOARE
• Papagena HAEGEE LEE/ALEXANDRA LOWE
• Speaker of the Temple JOCHEN SCHMECKENBECHER/DAVID SOAR
• First Lady ALEXANDRA LOWE/ANITA WATSON
• Second Lady HANNA HIPP/RACHEL KELLY
• Third Lady STEPHANIE WAKE-EDWARDS/GAYNOR KEEBLE
• First Priest HARRY NICOLL 
• Second Priest DONALD MAXWELL 
• First Man in Armour ALAN PINGARRÓN 
• Second Man in Armour JAMES PLATT

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Jenůfa

28 September–12 October 2021

The Royal Opera

Main Stage

Music Leoš Janáček

Sung in Czech with English surtitles

The Royal Opera continues its series of Janáček operas with the first production of Jenůfa at Covent Garden since 2001, by award-winning director Claus Guth. Janáček movingly captures Jenůfa's progression from hope to despair to eventual radiant happiness, while her stepmother, the Kostelnička, is one of opera's most complex maternal figures. The two courageous women struggle for fulfilment against the backdrop of a claustrophobic rural community.

Grigorian as Jenůfa and Karita Mattila as the Kostelnička lead a star cast with Hungarian conductor Henrik Nánási conducting a stunning score infused with traditional folk melodies of Janáček's native Moravia.

Creative Team

• Conductor HENRIK NÁNÁSI
• Director CLAUS GUTH
• Set designer MICHAEL LEVINE
• Costume designer GESINE VÖLLM
• Lighting designer JAMES FARNCOMBE
• Choreographer TERESA ROTEMBERG
• Video designer ROCAFILM
• Dramaturg YVONNE GEBAUER

Cast

• Jenůfa ASMIK GRIGORIAN
• Kostelnička KARITA MATTILA
• Laca Klemeň NICKY SPENCE
• Števa Buryja ANDREW STAPLES
• Grandmother Buryjovka ELENA ZILIO
• Foreman DAVID STOUT
• Mayor JEREMY WHITE
• Mayor's wife HELENE SCHNEIDERMAN/ CLARISSA MEEK
• Karolka JACQUELYN STUCKER
• Herdswoman ANGELA SIMKIN
• Barena APRIL KOYEJO-AUDIGER
• Jano YARITZA VÉLIZ

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Jette Parker Young Artists 20^th Anniversary

27 September 2021–23 July 2022

The Royal Opera

Jette Parker Young Artists

The Jette Parker Young Artists Programme this Season celebrates its 20th anniversary. In October, Meet The Young Artists Week offers a chance to hear live many of the artists who joined last year and whose performances you may only have seen on screen. The wonderful acoustic of the Linbury Theatre offers the perfect environment for a rich programme of song, piano music, operatic arias and ensembles, curated by the Programme's founder and Artistic Director David Gowland.

In the Linbury in May, they mark the centenary of Stravinsky's one-act opera Mavra, in a mixed programme with Schoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire. And throughout the year you can catch returning JPYA alumni and graduates of the Link Artist programme joining the Anniversary Company for roles on both stages and recital performances.

The anniversary year culminates on 23 July in a special performance on the Main Stage marking the Programme and its artists' achievements across two decades with Antonio Pappano who also celebrates 20 years with The Royal Opera.  

Generously supported by Oak Foundation

Recitals at Lunch, Crush Room

27 September 2021 ALEXANDRA LOWE

8 November 2021 KSENIIA NIKOLAIEVA

29 November 2021 NEW WORK RECITAL INCLUDING JPYA ALUMNI

24 January 2022 EGOR ZHURAVSKII

7 February 2022 NEW WORK RECITAL

14 February 2022 MICHAEL PAPADOPOULOS and MICHAEL SIKICH

14 March 2022 BLAISE MALABA

11 April 2022 ANDRÉS PRESNO

25 April 2022 THANDO MJANDANA

Meet the Young Artists Week, Linbury Theatre

5–9 October 2021

5 October, 7.45pm JUKE BOX 1

6 October, 1pm LUNCHTIME RECITAL | 7.45pm INSIGHT: WAGNER AT THE PIANO

7 October, 7.45pm BRITTEN SONG CYCLES

8 October, 7.45pm JUKEBOX 2

9 October, 7.45pm ALUMNI CONCERT

Mavra and Pierrot Lunaire

12–28 May 2022

The Royal Opera

Jette Parker Young Artists

Linbury Theatre

As part of their 20th-anniversary celebrations, the Jette Parker Young Artists present a mixed programme in the Linbury Theatre, bringing together Igor Stravinsky's rarely performed Mavra, 100 years after its 1922 premiere, and Arnold Schoenberg's 1912 Pierrot Lunaire. Stravinsky's one-act opera is based on a narrative poem by Pushkin, in which a Hussar disguises himself as a cook in an attempt to spend more time with his lover. Schoenberg's formally wide-ranging, atonal score, pre-dating the 12-tone technique for which he is celebrated, transforms into Sprechstimme the texts of poems by Albert Giraud on subjects ranging from love, sex and religion to violence, crime and blasphemy.

Creative Teams and Casts

• Conductor MICHAEL PAPADOPOULOS
• Director ANTHONY ALMEIDA
• Designer ROSANNA VIZE

MAVRA

Music Igor Stravinsky
Orchestration PAUL PHILLIPS
Libretto BORIS YEVGEN'YEVICH KOCHNO after the narrative poem The Little House at Kolomna by ALEXANDER PUSHKIN

• Parasha APRIL KOYEJO-AUDIGER
• The Hussar/Mavra EGOR ZHURAVSKII
• The Mother KSENIIA NIKOLAIEVA

PIERROT LUNAIRE

Music Arnold Schoenberg
Libretto ALBERT GIRAUD Poems from Pierrot Lunaire

• Soprano ALEXANDRA LOWE

20th Anniversary Summer Performance

Main Stage

23 July 2022

Jette Parker Young Artists and guests

• Sopranos ALEXANDRA LOWE
• Mezzo-sopranos KSENIIA NIKOLAIEVA
• Tenors ALAN PINGARRÓN, ANDRÉS PRESNO, EGOR ZHURAVSKII
• Baritone CHUMA SIJEQA
• Bass BLAISE MALABA

Conductors ANTONIO PAPPANO and MICHAEL PAPADOPOULOS

La traviata

27 October–17 November 2021/ 2 April–18 April 2022

The Royal Opera

Main Stage

Music Giuseppe Verdi

Six sopranos take the role of Violetta this Season in two runs of Richard Eyre's time-honoured production of Verdi's La traviata. Verdi's beautiful score contains some of his most inspired arias and duets, including Violetta's joyous ‘Sempre libera', and her poignant and passionate encounters with Alfredo and Germont. The superficial glamour of 19th-century Paris contrasts with scenes of great intimacy, culminating in the memorable, heart-breaking final act. The Royal Opera welcomes Lisette Oropesa, Ekaterina Bakanova, Anush Hovhannisyan, Pretty Yende, Angel Blue and Hrachuhí Bassénz to sing the favourite role of star sopranos in the most performed opera in the world.

Creative Team

• Conductors ANTONELLO MANACORDA/PAUL WYNNE GRIFFITHS/GIACOMO SAGRIPANTI/RENATO BALSADONNA
• Director RICHARD EYRE
• Designer BOB CROWLEY
• Lighting designer JEAN KALMAN
• Director of movement JANE GIBSON

Cast

• Violetta Valéry LISETTE OROPESA/EKATERINA BAKANOVA/ANUSH HOVHANNISYAN/PRETTY YENDE/ANGEL BLUE/HRACHUHÍ BASSÉNZ
• Alfredo Germont LIPARIT AVETISYAN/FRÉDÉRIC ANTOUN/STEPHEN COSTELLO/DMYTRO POPOV
• Giorgio Germont CHRISTIAN GERHAHER/CHRISTOPH POHL/DIMITRI PLATANIAS/VLADIMIR STOYANOV
• Annina RENATA SKARELYTE/SARAH PRING/KSENIIA NIKOLAIEVA/GAYNOR KEEBLE
• Doctor Grenvil BLAISE MALABA/SIMON SHIBAMBU/DAVID SHIPLEY
• Flora Bervoix STEPHANIE WAKE-EDWARDS/HONGNI WU/ANGELA SIMKIN/RACHEL KELLY
• Baron Douphol YURIY YURCHUK/JAMES CLEVERTON/GERMÁN E. ALCÁNTARA
• Gastone de Letorières EGOR ZHURAVSKII/THANDO MJANDANA/ANDRÉS PRESNO
• Marquis d'Obigny JEREMY WHITE

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Macbeth

16–30 November 2021

The Royal Opera

Main Stage

Music Giuseppe Verdi

For Verdi, Shakespeare was a long-standing passion and Macbeth (the first of his three Shakespearean masterpieces) is widely seen as a major step forward in his artistic development. First seen in 2002, Phyllida Lloyd's production encapsulates the sinister quality of the piece, with striking designs by Anthony Ward. Conducted by Daniele Rustioni, Simon Keenlyside returns to the title role, which he first performed at Covent Garden in 2011, with Italian soprano Anna Pirozzi returning as Lady Macbeth. Austrian bass Günther Groissböck sings the role of Macbeth's erstwhile friend Banquo and South Korean tenor David Junghoon Kim sings the role of Macbeth's enemy and eventual nemesis, Macduff.

Creative Team

• Conductor DANIELE RUSTIONI
• Director PHYLLIDA LLOYD
• Designer ANTHONY WARD
• Lighting designer PAULE CONSTABLE
• Choreographer MICHAEL KEEGAN-DOLAN

Cast

• Macbeth SIMON KEENLYSIDE
• Lady Macbeth ANNA PIROZZI
• Banquo GÜNTHER GROISSBÖCK
• Macduff DAVID JUNGHOON KIM
• Lady-in-waiting APRIL KOYEJO-AUDIGER
• Malcolm EGOR ZHURAVSKII
• Doctor BLAISE MALABA

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Wolf Witch Giant Fairy

17 December 2021–3 January 2022

A Royal Opera and Little Bulb production, in association with Farnham Maltings

Linbury Theatre

In the far-away land of fairy tales is a magical wood full of fantastical creatures, enchanted folk and tall pines stretching as far as the eye can see. Here, the trees see wonders as numerous as their branches – lovers in peril, witches on broomsticks, wolves in disguise… you never know what you might find. We all know the famous fairy tales and how they end… or do we? Wolf Witch Giant Fairy, a wild folk opera of music, mischief and magic, is a new collaboration between The Royal Opera and the always innovative Little Bulb, who return to the Linbury Theatre in this new family-friendly show for Christmas.

Company

• LITTLE BULB
• ALEXANDER SCOTT
• DOMINIC CONWAY
• CLARE BERESFORD

Cast

• PETER BRATHWAITE
• CLAIRE WILD

Tosca

5–22 December 2021 / 8–22 February 2022

The Royal Opera

Main Stage

Music Giacomo Puccini

Three outstanding casts bring alive the excitement of one of the best-loved operas in the repertory: Puccini's Tosca. From the demonic chords with which it famously begins to the violent twist of its shock ending, the tension never lets up for a moment. Into the romantic world of an idealistic painter, Cavaradossi, and his sensuous lover Tosca comes the malevolence of Baron Scarpia, Chief of Police, with fatal results. Jonathan Kent's taut and intense production with Paul Brown's historically charged designs wonderfully evokes the dangerous atmosphere of Rome in 1800, where love and evil come – thrillingly – face to face.

Creative Team

• Conductors OKSANA LYNIV/ FRANCESCO IVAN CIAMPA/MARCO ARMILIATO
• Director JONATHAN KENT
• Designer PAUL BROWN
• Lighting designer MARK HENDERSON

Cast

• Floria Tosca ELENA STIKHINA/ANNA PIROZZI/ANGELA GHEORGHIU
• Mario Cavaradossi BRYAN HYMEL/FREDDIE DE TOMMASO/STEFAN POP
• Baron Scarpia ALEXEY MARKOV/ CLAUDIO SGURA/MICHAEL VOLLE
• Spoletta HUBERT FRANCIS/ALED HALL
• Cesare Angelotti YURIY YURCHUK/CHUMA SIJEQA
• Sacristan JEREMY WHITE/ALEXANDER KÖPECZI
• Sciarrone JIHOON KIM/SIMON WILDING

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Nabucco

20 December 2021–23 January 2022

The Royal Opera, co-production with La Scala, Milan, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona

Main Stage

Music Giuseppe Verdi

The tragic story of a desperate father's descent into madness, his two daughters torn apart by their love for the same man, is set against the epic biblical backdrop of the Israelites' exile from their homeland in Verdi's early masterpiece. The opera was an instant success at its 1842 premiere, with the famed Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves (‘Va, pensiero') taking on an anthemic political resonance that lasts to this day. For this revival of Daniele Abbado's 2013 production, Daniel Oren conducts Enkhbat Amartuvshin as Nabucco (Nebuchadnezzar) King of the Babylonians, Anna Netrebko as the scheming princess Abigaille (sharing the role with Liudmyla Monastyrska) and Alexander Vinogradov as the high priest Zaccaria.

Creative Team

• Conductor DANIEL OREN
• Director DANIELE ABBADO
• Associate Director BORIS STETKA
• Designer ALISON CHITTY
• Lighting designer ALESSANDRO CARLETTI
• Video designer LUCA SCARZELLA
• Movement director SIMONA BUCCI

Cast

• Nabucco (Nebuchadnezzar) ENKHBAT AMARTUVSHIN
• Abigaille LIUDMYLA MONASTYRSKA/ANNA NETREBKO
• Zaccaria ALEXANDER VINOGRADOV
• Fenena VASILISA BERZHANSKAYA
• Ismaele NAJMIDDIN MAVLYANOV
• High Priest of Baal BLAISE MALABA
• Anna APRIL KOYEJO-AUDIGER
• Abdallo ANDRÉS PRESNO

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

The Marriage of Figaro

9–27 January 2022

The Royal Opera

Main Stage

Music Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

From the headlong rush of the overture, Mozart's timeless comedy is a breathless journey through one very eventful day in the life of an 1830s château. Figaro and his bride Susanna conspire to foil the unwanted advances of Count Almaviva, while the Countess has her heart stolen by a cross-dressing pageboy. Mozart's music unfolds with beautiful solos and ensembles to amplify the deep emotions behind the seemingly farcical surface. Music Director of The Royal Opera Antonio Pappano brings his specialist perspective to Mozart's effervescent score, sharing the baton with Christopher Willis. A young and predominantly Italian cast perform this revival of David McVicar's sumptuous and hugely popular period staging.

Creative Team

• Conductors ANTONIO PAPPANO/CHRISTOPHER WILLIS
• Director DAVID MCVICAR
• Designer TANYA MCCALLIN
• Lighting designer PAULE CONSTABLE
• Movement director LEAH HAUSMAN

Cast

• Figaro RICCARDO FASSI
• Susanna GIULIA SEMENZATO
• Count Almaviva DAVIDE LUCIANO
• Countess Almaviva FEDERICA LOMBARDI
• Cherubino HANNA HIPP
• Don Basilio GREGORY BONFATTI
• Marcellina MONICA BACELLI
• Bartolo GIANLUCA BURATTO
• Antonio JEREMY WHITE
• Barbarina ALEXANDRA LOWE
• Don Curzio ALASDAIR ELLIOTT

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Theodora

31 January–16 February 2022

The Royal Opera, co-production with Teatro Real, Madrid

Main Stage

Music George Frideric Handel

The Royal Opera continues its celebration of the operas and oratorios Handel wrote for Covent Garden with a new production of his late masterpiece, Theodora, in which love transcends political tyranny. Theodora is persecuted for her religious beliefs, but her virtue inspires the devotion of one of her oppressors. Joyce DiDonato and rising stars Julia Bullock and Jakub Józef Orliński lead an international cast of baroque specialists with some of Handel's greatest choruses, matched in brilliance by arias and duets of profound dignity and humanity. Director Katie Mitchell views the story through the lens of contemporary religious terrorism, and gives a modern, feminist context to a work not heard at Covent Garden since 1750.

Creative Team

• Conductor HARRY BICKET
• Director KATIE MITCHELL
• Set designer CHLOE LAMFORD
• Costume designer SUSSIE JUHLIN-WALLÉN
• Lighting designer JAMES FARNCOMBE
• Movement director SHELLEY MAXWELL

Cast

• Theodora JULIA BULLOCK
• Irene JOYCE DIDONATO
• Didymus JAKUB JÓZEF ORLIŃSKI
• Septimus ED LYON
• Valens GYULA ORENDT
• Messenger THANDO MJANDANA

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Bajazet

4–12 February 2022

The Royal Opera, co-production with Irish National Opera

Linbury Theatre

Music Antonio Vivaldi

A recent revival of interest in Vivaldi's operas has introduced modern audiences to the adrenalin rush of his instrumentally virtuosic vocal writing. His opera Bajazet, first performed in Verona in 1735, is an extraordinary thriller set in a dark, tense, claustrophobic environment. Powerful men and strong women negotiate their relationships as desires of the heart clash with rank and duty. The drama is brought to life in the intimate setting of the Linbury Theatre by director Adele Thomas, experienced in this repertory. The Royal Opera and Irish National Opera, whose production of Vivaldi's Griselda made waves in 2019, join forces for this wonderful opportunity to discover Vivaldi – and Baroque opera – anew.

Creative Team

• Conductor PETER WHELAN
• Director ADELE THOMAS
• Set and costume designer MOLLY O'CATHAIN
• Lighting designer SINÉAD WALLACE

Cast

• Bajazet GIANLUCA MARGHERI
• Tamerlano JAMES LAING
• Asteria NIAMH O'SULLIVAN
• Andronicus ERIC JURENAS
• Irene RACHEL KELLY
• Idaspe AOIFE MISKELLY

Irish Baroque Orchestra

Peter Grimes

17–31 March 2022

The Royal Opera co-production with Teatro Real, Madrid, Teatro dell'Opera di Roma and L'Opéra National de Paris

Main Stage

Music Benjamin Britten

Following Deborah Warner's award-winning production of Billy Budd in 2019, The Royal Opera continues its Benjamin Britten series with her new production of Peter Grimes, which had its premiere in Madrid in April 2021. Warner's sympathetic approach to Britten's sombre parable foregrounds the complexity of Peter Grimes himself and the tragic conflict between the group and the individual. Mark Elder conducts a cast that includes British singers Allan Clayton, Bryn Terfel and John Tomlinson, alongside Maria Bengtsson and former Jette Parker Young Artist Jacques Imbrailo.

Creative team

• Conductor MARK ELDER
• Director DEBORAH WARNER
• Set designer MICHAEL LEVINE
• Costume designer LUIS F. CARVALHO
• Lighting designer PETER MUMFORD
• Movement director KIM BRANDSTRUP

Cast

• Peter Grimes ALLAN CLAYTON
• Ellen Orford MARIA BENGTSSON
• Captain Balstrode BRYN TERFEL
• Swallow JOHN TOMLINSON
• Ned Keene JACQUES IMBRAILO
• Auntie CATHERINE WYN-ROGERS
• Mrs Sedley ROSIE ALDRIDGE
• Bob Boles JOHN GRAHAM-HALL
• First Niece JENNIFER FRANCE
• Second Niece ALEXANDRA LOWE
• Rev. Horace Adams JAMES GILCHRIST
• Hobson STEPHEN RICHARDSON

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Lohengrin

19 April–14 May 2022

The Royal Opera, co-production with Opera Vlaanderen

Main Stage

Music Richard Wagner

David Alden's acclaimed staging of Wagner's early masterpiece, first seen in 2018, places the opera in the timeless setting of a bombed-out city – a dystopian world threatened from outside, where the people are looking for both a sense of direction and a new leader. American heldentenor Brandon Jovanovich leads the cast as the mysterious ‘swan knight' Lohengrin, sent to defend the accused Elsa von Brabant, under the condition that she must never ask his true identity. Former Jette Parker Young Artists Jennifer Davis and Kostas Smoriginas return to Covent Garden as Elsa and the wicked Friedrich von Telramund, while Anna Smirnova and Maida Hundeling share the role of Telramund's evil wife Ortrud. Jakub Hrůša conducts.

Creative Team

• Conductor JAKUB HRŮŠA
• Director DAVID ALDEN
• Set designer PAUL STEINBERG
• Costume designer GIDEON DAVEY
• Lighting designer ADAM SILVERMAN
• Video designer TAL ROSNER
• Movement director MAXINE BRAHAM

Cast

• Lohengrin BRANDON JOVANOVICH
• Elsa von Brabant JENNIFER DAVIS
• Ortrud ANNA SMIRNOVA/MAIDA HUNDELING
• Friedrich von Telramund KOSTAS SMORIGINAS
• King Heinrich GÁBOR BRETZ
• Herald DEREK WELTON

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Don Pasquale

3–20 May 2022

The Royal Opera co-production with Opéra National de Paris and Teatro Massimo, Palermo

Main Stage

Music Gaetano Donizetti

Donizetti's comedic tale of trickery and deception has delighted and surprised audiences for centuries. The witty story of a middle-aged man whose supposed young wife runs rings around him, with her own ulterior romantic purpose in mind, in combination with Donizetti's sparkling score remains as fun and full of life as ever. Returning after a successful run in 2019, Damiano Michieletto's exhilarating production shows how contemporary the characters still are and how immediate and touching the story remains.

Creative Team

• Conductor GIACOMO SAGRIPANTI
• Director DAMIANO MICHIELETTO
• Set designer PAOLO FANTIN
• Costume designer AGOSTINO CAVALCA
• Lighting designer ALESSANDRO CARLETTI
• Video designer ROCAFILM

Cast

• Don Pasquale ILDEBRANDO D'ARCANGELO
• Norina PRETTY YENDE/ZUZANA MARKOVÁ
• Ernesto XABIER ANDUAGA
• Malatesta ANDRZEJ FILOŃCZYK

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Samson et Dalila

26 May–19 June 2022

The Royal Opera

Main Stage

Music Camille Saint-Saëns

Pious restraint comes face to face with sensuous hedonism in Camille Saint-Saëns's grand-opera retelling of the Bible story of Samson and Delilah. Multi-Olivier Award winning director Richard Jones returns to The Royal Opera to stage this spectacular fin-de-siècle masterpiece, not performed at Covent Garden in over 40 years. Elīna Garanča stars as the Philistine Dalila, Nicky Spence as the inspiring Jewish hero Samson and Antonio Pappano conducts the full forces of the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House. With superb singing in solos and duets of great intimacy and fervour, gorgeous music with thrilling orchestral interludes, and splendid choral numbers for the Royal Opera Chorus – this will be an opera evening to remember.

Creative Team

• Conductor ANTONIO PAPPANO
• Director RICHARD JONES
• Set designer HYEMI SHIN
• Costume designer NICKY GILLIBRAND
• Lighting designer ANDREAS FUCHS
• Movement director LUCY BURGE

Cast

• Samson NICKY SPENCE
• Dalila ELĪNA GARANČA
• High Priest of Dagon LUKASZ GOLINSKI
• First Philistine ALAN PINGARRÓN
• Second Philistine CHUMA SIJEQA
• Philistine Messenger THANDO MJANDANA

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Madama Butterfly

14 June–6 July 2022

The Royal Opera, co-production with Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona

Main Stage

Music Giacomo Puccini

The clash of Eastern and Western cultures proves the downfall of a young geisha in one of the most popular of all Italian operas. Lianna Haroutounian takes the title role in four performances of this revival of Moshe Leiser and Patrice Caurier's elegant production for The Royal Opera, inspired by 19th-century European images of Japan. From the radiant happiness of Cio-Cio-San's ‘Ancora un passo', to the devastating pathos of ‘Un bel dì vedremo' as she longs for the ‘fine day' when her husband will return, Puccini's music evokes the shifting perspectives within the Japanese setting: sensual and seductive at the outset, yet brutal and heartbreaking by the end. Further casting for the title role to be announced.

Creative team

• Conductor DAN ETTINGER
• Directors MOSHE LEISER/PATRICE CAURIER
• Set designer CHRISTIAN FENOUILLAT
• Costume designer AGOSTINO CAVALCA
• Lighting designer CHRISTOPHE FOREY

Cast

• Cio-Cio-San LIANNA HAROUTOUNIAN
• Lieutenant B.F. Pinkerton FREDDIE DE TOMMASO/GIANLUCA TERRANOVA
• Sharpless LUCAS MEACHEM/GYULA NAGY
• Suzuki KSENIIA NIKOLAIEVA
• Goro ALEXANDER KRAVETS
• The Bonze JEREMY WHITE
• Kate Pinkerton RACHAEL LLOYD
• Prince Yamadori ALAN PINGARRÓN

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Violet

23 June 2022

The Royal Opera in association with Hackney Empire a co-commission and co-production by music Theatre Wales, Britten Pears Arts and The Royal Opera

Hackney Empire

Music Tom Coult

Sung in English with English surtitles

In a muddied nightdress, in a country kitchen, Violet finally smiles. For years, her tired daily routine has been dictated by the inescapable chime of the Clock Tower, until one night she feels time quicken. Suddenly an hour is lost – every day. As the hours disappear, long-held certainties evaporate and ordered society falls into disarray. With the townspeople in crisis, can Violet finally escape? Presented at Hackney Empire and combining the acclaimed talents of playwright Alice Birch, known for her powerful female-centered writing, and rising star composer Tom Coult, this is opera for now and about now.

Creative team

• Libretto ALICE BIRCH
• Conductor ANDREW GOURLAY
• Director JUDE CHRISTIAN
• Designer ROSIE ELNILE
• Costume designer CÉCILE TRÉMOLIÈRES
• Lighting designer JOSHUA PHARO

Cast

• Violet ELIZABETH ATHERTON
• Laura FRANCES GREGORY
• Felix ELLIOTT CARLTON HINES

LONDON SINFONIETTA

Così fan tutte

25 June–9 July 2022

The Royal Opera

Main stage

Music Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Following a bet, two young men disguise themselves and attempt to seduce each other's girlfriends with unexpected and comical results. The lovers learn, in director Jan Philipp Gloger's words, that ‘love is not a God-given thing, but something that we have to fight for, find, define, create and dream newly, almost every day'. Mozart's beautiful score contains some of the composer's most attractive arias and is packed with humour. In the 19th century many viewed its plot as immoral or even cruel. However, since the second half of the 20th century its wonderful music and Mozart and librettist Da Ponte's witty, compassionate examination of young love have ensured its lasting popularity.

Creative team

• Conductor JULIA JONES
• Director JAN PHILIPP GLOGER
• Set designer BEN BAUR
• Costume designer KARIN JUD
• Lighting designer BERND PURKRABEK
• Dramaturg KATHARINA JOHN

Cast

• Fiordiligi JENNIFER DAVIS
• Dorabella JULIE BOULIANNE
• Ferrando BOGDAN VOLKOV
• Guglielmo GORDON BINTNER
• Despina SERENA GAMBERONI
• Don Alfonso LUCIO GALLO

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Cavalleria rusticana / Pagliacci

5–20 July 2022

The Royal Opera, co-production with Göteborgs Operan. Opera Australia, Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie

Main Stage

Music Pietro Mascagni/Ruggero Leoncavallo

Damiano Michieletto's Olivier Award-winning double production draws these opera classics together in a thrillingly observed re-creation of life in a southern Italian village. Emotions erupt as a travelling theatre visits, leading to shocking events brought about by secret love and uncontrollable jealousy. Antonio Pappano conducts a star cast led by Jonas Kaufmann, in the dual roles of Turridu and Canio, alongside Royal Opera favourites Ermonela Jaho (Nedda), Anita Rachvelishvili (Santuzza) and Dimitri Platanias (Alfio/ Tonio). With intense drama and passionate, instantly recognisable melodies, ‘Cav and Pag' distils into one wonderful evening out the enduring appeal of Italian opera in its most familiar form.

Creative Team

• Conductor ANTONIO PAPPANO
• Director DAMIANO MICHIELETTO
• Set designer PAOLO FANTIN
• Costume designer CARLA TETI
• Lighting designer ALESSANDRO CARLETTI

Cast

CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA

• Turiddu JONAS KAUFMANN
• Santuzza ANITA RACHVELISHVILI
• Alfio DIMITRI PLATANIAS
• Lola AIGUL AKHMETSHINA
• Mamma Lucia ELENA ZILIO

PAGLIACCI

• Canio JONAS KAUFMANN
• Tonio DIMITRI PLATANIAS
• Nedda ERMONELA JAHO
• Silvio MATTIA OLIVIERI
• Beppe EGOR ZHURAVSKII

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

The Blue Woman

6–11 July 2022

The Royal Opera co-production with Britten Pears Arts

Linbury Theatre

Music Laura Bowler

The Blue Woman explores the psychological aftermath of sexual violence on women. It excavates the interior landscape of one woman, who has experienced a post-traumatic shattering of self as a consequence of being raped. It follows her as she searches a nameless city looking for what was taken. Wrapped around the central spine of the story are fragments of text, from other women of different ages, who have all been victims of sexual violence. Formally experimental, the structure of the opera mirrors the journey of fracture and reform that the Woman goes on. The Blue Woman provokes a conversation between how operas deal with violence against women and our modern day understanding of this reality.

Creative Team

• Libretto LAURA LOMAS
• Director KATIE MITCHELL

Cast

• ELAINE MITCHENER
• GWENETH ANN RAND
• LUCY SCHAUFER
• ROSIE MIDDLETON

Otello

12–24 July 2022

The Royal Opera

Main Stage

Music Giuseppe Verdi

Verdi's Shakespeare-inspired penultimate opera marks the culmination of the composer's genius, and is one of the most powerful works in the repertory. The perfect marriage of music and drama, with scenes ranging from the grand and ceremonial to those of exquisite intimacy, Otello charts the fall of an all-powerful leader from the radiance of power to the darkness of deluded jealousy. American tenor Russell Thomas takes on the title role for which he is becoming increasingly renowned, alongside Armenian soprano Hrachuhí Bassénz as Desdemona and British baritone Christopher Maltman as Otello's nemesis Iago. Daniele Rustioni conducts this revival of Keith Warner's brooding and insightful production.

Creative Team

• Conductor DANIELE RUSTIONI
• Director KEITH WARNER
• Set designer BORIS KUDLIČKA
• Costume designer KASPAR GLARNER
• Lighting designer BRUNO POET
• Movement director MICHAEL BARRY
• Fight director RAN ARTHUR BRAUN

Cast

• Otello RUSSELL THOMAS
• Desdemona HRACHUHÍ BASSÉNZ
• Iago CHRISTOPHER MALTMAN
• Cassio PIOTR BUSZEWSKI
• Roderigo ANDRÉS PRESNO
• Emilia KSENIIA NIKOLAIEVA
• Montano BLAISE MALABA
• Lodovico ALEXANDER KÖPECZI

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

Attila in Concert

19–22 July 2022

The Royal Opera

Main Stage

Music Giuseppe Verdi

Italian conductor Speranza Scappucci makes her Royal Opera debut conducting these special concert performances of Verdi's second opera for La Fenice in Venice, which tells the founding story of the city itself after the destruction of Aquileia by Attila, King of the Huns. This is a rare opportunity to experience one of Verdi's most stirring operas with a fantastic cast that includes Ildar Abdrazakov as the conquering Attila, Sondra Radvanovsky as Odabella, daughter of the Lord of the fateful Aquileia, Joseph Calleja as her lover Foresto and Simon Keenlyside as the heroic Roman General Ezio.

• Conductor SPERANZA SCAPPUCCI
• Attila ILDAR ABDRAZAKOV
• Odabella SONDRA RADVANOVSKY
• Ezio SIMON KEENLYSIDE
• Foresto JOSEPH CALLEJA
• Uldino EGOR ZHURAVSKII

ROYAL OPERA CHORUS

ORCHESTRA OF THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE