Venue: Glyndebourne Opera House

A memorable performance makes a worthy memorial to the late, great Bernard Haitink, who conducted the production's premiere. 

A vast panopticon cages strong musical performances in Wake-Walker's Fidelio at Glyndebourne, with Dorothea Herbert and Adam Smith standing out vocally and emotionally as Leonore and Florestan.

Not quite as innocent an account of opera buffa as others, but for quality of musicianship, Glyndebourne Tour's revival of Mariame Clément’s production of Donizetti's comedy hits all the right notes.

For social distancing reasons, the Festival dispensed with a full staging of Wagner's epic love story, allowing singers and orchestra to share the stage in an able compromise.

Christof Loy would seem to be the perfect director for Covid-era opera, his stripped back production of Verdi's rare middle period opera directed remotely from Austria.

Lush visuals and appealing singing do not quite make up for a somewhat lacklustre revival of Nicholas Hytner's acclaimed 2006 production of Mozart's late comedy.

Mariame Clément's hilarious and brilliantly original staging of Rossini's opera buffa is served with a generous helping of Rossinian bel canto. Who could ask for more?

Glyndebourne's 2021 season opens with an intense, minimalist staging of Janáček’s tale of adultery, focused on the contrasts between its heroine's dreams and reality.