Performer: National Moravian-Silesian Theatre

Glorious music and excellent singing can't mask a simplistic staging of Smetana's last opera, an uneasy combination of rom-com and medieval legend. 

This gem from Martinů received a bright, spirited performance at the Estates Theatre in Prague – putting an early gleam on what should be an interesting year celebrating Czech music.

Written while the composer was imprisoned in the Theresienstadt ghetto, Viktor Ullmann’s powerful opera imagines an end to death.