Performer: Kristin Lewis

This revival of the Met's 30-year-old production of Aida had a disappointing debut in the title role but Dolora Zajick's reign as Amneris is still a force of nature.

Has Health and Safety finally caught up with the Spanish Inquisition? A flameless auto-da-fé and some low-key individual performances meant this revival took time to hit its stride. 

A revival of a verismo rarity: Umberto Giordano's La cene delle beffe at La Scala. 

Young Russian coloratura soprano Maria Nazarova gets the Oscar. 

With elegant sets and superlative musicianship, Verdi came to life in the House where he is revered most. This musical feast will have us licking our lips for some time yet.

Cirque du Soleil producer Franco Dragone's new Aida for the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples aimed to scrub off all the bombast from this triumphalistic work. The eccentricities of the production led to a poor-quality outcome, though there was some fine singing.