Artiste: José Ferrero

The opening night of Paolo Pinamonti's second season as director of the Teatro de la Zarzuela had, in principle, its fair share of artistic incentives but unfortunately turned out to be a dismal season start.

Scottish Opera revives Sir David McVicar's Madama Butterfly. It still looks wonderful. The music, players and singers tell the harrowing story magnificently.

Scottish Opera’s final production of the season was a revival of the much-loved 1980 production of Tosca by the late Anthony Besch, redirected here by Jonathan Cocker. Besch was struck by the political parallel between the Napoleonic era of the 1800s and Italy under Mussolini in the 1940s, and he made the bold choice to set this production in 1943.