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Andrei Șerban’s 1984 staging of Turandot may the oldest production left in The Royal Opera’s stable, but there's life in the old horse yet. 

Led by Bryn Terfel's Scarpia and Natalya Romaniw's Tosca – not forgetting Aled Hall's scene-stealing Spoletta – this revival of Jonathan Kent's 2006 staging is urgently paced. 

An outstanding choral performance by nearly 300 singers of the BBC National Chorus of Wales and the Crouch End Festival Chorus lights up Verdi’s hybrid of opera and devotional music.

The Ukrainian conductor heads an impressively cast revival of Franco Zeffirelli's gaudy Turandot. 

Robert Carsen's Aida focusses on the brutality of war, with powerful lead performances from Angel Blue, SeokJong Baek and Elīna Garanča, plus strong orchestral colours from Sir Mark Elder.

With more cast reshuffles than in Downing Street of late, this revival of Damiano Michieletto's intertwined Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci double bill triumphs against the odds.

Inspiration eludes the director as a new staging of Saint-Säens’ biblical epic falls flat but for some excellent musical performances led by outstanding mezzo Elīna Garanča.