Tag: Scottish Opera

Scottish Opera announces 2026/27 Season featuring seven new productions

  • Six new mainstage productions: The Galloping Cure, Turandot, Alcina, Fidelio, Madama Butterfly, and Così fan tutte 
  • Commitment to bringing opera right across Scotland with a new touring production of Hansel & Gretel with local children’s chorus, threePop-up Opera shows and a newly commissioned Primary Schools Tour, visiting over 80 locations in total
  • Season championed by female creative talent with a world premiere by Grammy-nominated Missy Mazzoli, and productions directed by Olivia Fuchs, Ruth Knight, Daisy Evans, Rebecca Meltzer and Lucy Bradley
  • Britten: Music for Voice and Orchestra concert marks the 50th anniversary of the composer’s death
  • Scottish Opera General Director, Alex Reedijk OBE, celebrates 20 years with the Company
  • BUILD brings together a range of initiatives for young people, nurturing the creative arts in Scotland and developing the professionals of tomorrow, on stage and behind the scenes
  • Tickets on general sale from 28 May for mainstage productions with affordable pricing from £23, £15 for under-26s and £12.50 for Access Opera

WATCH THE 2026/27 TRAILER, READ THE SEASON BROCHURE AND LISTEN TO THE SCOTTISH OPERA PODCAST HERE

In its 2026/27 Season, which is unveiled today (7 May), Scottish Opera presents seven new productions spanning almost 300 years of operatic innovation. Ambitious, outward-looking, socially committed and artistically uncompromising, the Company remains as devoted as ever, holding its artistic nerve in challenging times, producing exceptional work at every scale and creating opera for everyone in Scotland.

As Scotland’s largest arts organisation and an industry leader which currently employs 188 staff, and 450 freelancers, it is also dedicated to cultivating the creative arts pipeline of audiences and professionals for the next era of opera. This includes new initiatives such as BUILD, and a new collaboration with Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

Alex Reedijk OBE, Scottish Opera General Director said: ‘Opera is not a luxury, it is a necessity. At Scottish Opera, we believe in the power of music, drama, and great art to provoke thought and move people to their core, and in my 20th year as General Director, that conviction has never been stronger. Nothing matters more to us than bringing opera to everyone across Scotland.

‘The mainstage shows at the centre of the Season centre on brilliant, complex, powerful female characters. We also make a concrete, visible commitment to the women shaping the next era of opera including the work of composers and directors Missy Mazzoli, Olivia Fuchs, Ruth Knight, Daisy Evans, Rebecca Meltzer and Lucy Bradley.  

‘There are new co-productions and co-commissions with Irish National Opera, Opera Ventures Productions, NorrlandsOperan, Canadian Opera Company, San Francisco Opera, State Opera of South Australia, and Edinburgh International Festival.

‘Our impact and reach will also be evident as we tour the country, visiting 34 communities with Opera on Your Doorstep, as well as Pop-up Opera, schools shows and outreach and education projects.

‘We are immensely grateful to everyone who buys a ticket and generously supports the Company as a Patron or a Friend, and indeed all our funders. We look forward to welcoming you to one of our performances.’

Stuart Stratford, Scottish Opera Music Director said: ‘Our unwavering dedication to new work and opera’s future comes to the fore with the world premiere of Missy Mazzoli and Royce Vavrek’s The Galloping Cure – a dazzlingly inventive and urgent opera exploring the human toll of the opioid crisis – at the Edinburgh International Festival.

“Our five subsequent mainstage productions – Puccini’s Turandot and Madama Butterfly, Handel’s Alcina, Beethoven’s Fidelio, and Mozart’s Così fan tutte in collaboration with the new Advanced Artist Diploma in Opera programme at Royal Conservatoire of Scotland – are no less vibrant and urgent for today’s audiences. 

‘These works are not museum pieces. They ask us difficult questions about identity, freedom and betrayal – questions that constantly re-emerge in our own world. We hope you find something to treasure here.’

SEASON 2026/27

At the core of the new Season are remarkable tales of transformation and transcendence, love and loss, finding oneself, and standing up for truth and goodness in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds.

At Edinburgh International Festival this August is the world premiere of Grammy-nominated composer Missy Mazzoli’s The Galloping Cure. Co-commissioned with Opera Ventures Productions, it is directed by Tony Award-winning Tom Morris and conducted by Stuart Stratford. Mazzoli’s score blends orchestral and choral writing with club rhythms and DJ textures, and it is performed by a cast including Daniela Mack, Justin Austin and Susan Bullock with Gabrielle Turgeon joining the cast as Noy. This ambitious production has already been picked up by opera houses on three continents for future performances.

This October, Sir David McVicar, who first directed for Scottish Opera in 1996, returns to the Company to stage a new, visually opulent production of Puccini’s Turandot, featuring the more expansive Alfano One ending. Stuart Stratford conducts Trine Bastrup Møller in the title role, alongside Victor Starsky, Insung Sim, and Hye-Youn Lee in what promises to be a production like no other. Reuniting with the creative team behind 2023’s award-winning Il trittico, McVicar confronts the darkness of Puccini’s work head on.

In February 2027, Olivia Fuchs directs Handel’s romantic fantasy, Alcina. For the Company’s first Handel in over a decade, renowned conductor Dmitri Jurowski is on the podium, and the cast includes Madeline Boreham, 2026/27 Emerging Artists Charlotte Clapperton, Charlotte Jane Kennedy, and Luvo Maranti; and Emerging Artist alumni Chloe Harris and Edward Jowle.

In the same month, Ruth Knight directs Beethoven’s Fidelio, to mark the 200th anniversary of the composer’s death. Beethoven’s only opera, conducted by Kensho Watanabe, features a cast including Julia Sporsén and Thorbjørn Gulbrandsøy. Fidelio has been designed on the same set as Alcina, demonstrating how the Company is consistently thinking of more sustainable and innovative ways to present opera.

In May 2027, Daisy Evans directs Puccini’s heartbreaking masterpiece, Madama Butterfly.  Stuart Stratford conducts a cast led by Sunyoung Seo, with Andrés Presno, Lea Shaw and Phillip Rhodes. Hailed in the press as a ‘Butterfly for the ages’, it reimagines Cio-Cio-San’s story as a journey through memory and identity. There are also two relaxed Access Opera performances of Madama Butterfly, in Glasgow and Edinburgh, which make coming to a favourite title as easy and stress-free as possible.  

Rebecca Meltzer directs Mozart and Da Ponte’s biting social satire, Così fan tutte, also in May of next year. In this first opera presented in collaboration with the RCS Advanced Artist Diploma in Opera, John Butt conducts The Orchestra of Scottish Opera and a cast of hand-picked, international singers in the final stages of their training.

At the mainstage shows, those who are visually impaired can also take advantage of audio-described performances, free Touch Tours and pre-show talks, all of which enhance the audience enjoyment and extend their knowledge of the piece.

CONCERTS

Britten: Music for Voice and Orchestra this September marks the 50th anniversary of the renowned British composer’s death. The concert at Lammermuir Festival features Arvo Pärt’s Cantus in memoriam Benjamin Britten, and Britten’s Les Illuminations, Our Hunting Fathers and Phaedra. Douglas Boyd conducts 2026/27 Emerging Artists Charlotte Jane Kennedy, Avery Lafrentz and Charlotte Clapperton.

This November,to celebrate 120 years of His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen, The Orchestra of Scottish Opera and soloists including Jamie MacDougall unite for a one-off concert. The programme includes the Great American Songbook and opera and operetta’s best-loved composers.

Presented in November by much-loved broadcaster and tenor Jamie MacDougall, and with the full forces of The Orchestra of Scottish Opera is an evening at Eden Court Inverness, which celebrates its 50th year. From Missy Mazzoli’s Breaking the Waves to iconic arias from Carmen, Madama Butterfly, and The Magic Flute, this is opera at its most vivid. As a special treat, Jamie also performs a collection of irresistible songs popularised by Harry Lauder.

TOURING

Opera On Your Doorstep returns with a staged production of Humperdinck’s Hansel & Gretel, directed by Lucy Bradley. Thanks to a new funding partnership with Laidlaw Opera Trust, it istouring to 34 locations across Scotland in Autumn 2026 and Spring 2027.

The Music Director/Pianists José Javier Ucendo and Alistair Burton are joined by Charlotte Clapperton, Charlotte Jane Kennedy, Holly Teague, Avery Lafrentz, Rosie Lavery, Alexey Gusev, Ross Cumming, Emily Wishart and Audrey Tsang. In each location on the tour, local children will have the unique opportunity to perform in the production.

Pop-up Opera tours to audiences all over the country from May, with performances of A Little Bit of The Elixir of Love, A Little Bit of Rigoletto, and children’s opera, Be a Sport, Spike!, for children aged four to eight. Directed by Darren Brownlie, these 30-minute, miniaturised classics are ideal for anyone new to the artform. There will also be free school performances plus free illustration workshops for kids at select venues.  Storytellers Marc MacKinnon and Dani Heron, along with singers Holly Teague, Marie Claire Breen, Ross Cumming, Colin Murray, cellist Andrew Drummond Huggan and guitarist Sasha Savaloni — present the story.

EMERGING ARTISTS, NATIONAL OPERA STUDIO & ROYAL CONSERVATOIRE PARTNERSHIP

The Scottish Opera Emerging Artistsprogramme offers rising talent a period of full-time work with the Company to help launch their careers. The Company is delighted to welcome sopranos Charlotte Jane Kennedy, Avery Lafrentz, mezzo-soprano Charlotte Clapperton, tenor Luvo Maranti, baritone Daniel Barrett, repetiteur Alistair Burton and casting officer Joseph Hookway, with the name of the Elizabeth Salvesen Costume Trainee to be announced. The Emerging Artist singers perform in several of this Season’s productions and tours, and a recital at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

Scottish Opera is once again partnering with National Opera Studio, hosting the 2026/27 cohort – a group comprising some of the brightest rising star singers and repetiteurs from around the world, for a brand-new showcase performance of operatic scenes and extracts on the set of Alcina.

Scottish Opera’s Music Director Stuart Stratford is a regular guest tutor at Royal Conservatoire of Scotland; he and The Orchestra of Scottish Opera are helping to train the next generation of conductors studying at the Conservatoire. RCS MMus conductors enjoy concerto workshop sessions with The Orchestra of Scottish Opera and RCS student soloists, under Stuart’s guidance.

The Company also supports the Leverhulme Conducting Fellowship, facilitated through RCS, with each year’s Fellow closely involved with Scottish Opera. This Season’s Fellow, Stefano Boccacci, will receive coaching and performance opportunities, including on Così fan tutte, and other professional classical music organisations across Scotland.

OUTREACH AND EDUCATION

BUILD, supported by The William Syson Foundation, is new for the 2026/27 Season and brings together a range of initiatives for young people looking to further their knowledge of the arts industry. Through practical and transferrable experiences, the Company aims to equip budding artists and arts professionals for future employment and help them make informed and ambitious choices – to fulfil their potential and define opera’s next era with confidence, passion, and skill. 

Over the years, the Scottish Opera Primary Schools Tour has inspired over 850,000 children across all 32 Local Authority areas. This year’s show is newly commissioned work, Vive La Révolution, with a live tour, supported digital package and on-demand digital packages all available to prepare for a performance in costume in front of friends and family. Music is by Alan Penman with words by Natalie Arle-Toyne, and through song and stagecraft, pupils will find out what really happened in 1789 when the people of Paris stormed the infamous Bastille.

The Elixir of Love: Three Ways to Stage an Operais a free teaching resource for teachers, where Secondary School pupils learn about music, drama, and art and design – incorporating elements of history, storytelling, and critical thinking – as they explore Donizetti’s comedy.

Disney Musicals in Schools collaborates with primary schools facing challenges in engaging with the arts. Teaching Artists guide pupils through rehearsals for special adaptations of Disney musicals and, crucially, provide training for teachers to build their pupils’ skills and confidence through the performing arts, creating a sustainable arts legacy for the future. Scottish Opera is Disney Musicals in Schools’ first Scottish partner, and this sixth successful year of the programme is the third year to engage with Additional Support Needs Schools.

Scottish Opera partners with key specialist music schools across Scotland, Aberdeen City Music School at Dyce Academy, St Mary’s Music School in Edinburgh, and Douglas Academy in Glasgow, to support and mentor young singers exploring opera as a career. In 2026/27, the Company now expands this very successful programme to engage with secondary age students at other institutions who are exploring classical music as a career, giving more students a chance to engage with the operatic repertoire. The aim is to bolster arts industry career pathways and support the classical music industry in Scotland.

Scottish Opera’s Children’s Chorus led by Chorus Director Susannah Wapshott and the Company’s Outreach & Education Department, for youngsters aged 8-11, continues, as does Edinburgh Tonic Arts Chorus for NHS Lothian staff.

Expanding the Company’s partnership with Tonic Arts and NHS Lothian is a new dual-strand pilot programme in West Lothian to offer extra support, build physical strength and promote emotional wellbeing for new parents. It will offer therapeutic singing for families of premature babies, to encourage bonds when the baby might still be in an incubator, and specialised yoga, stretching and breath control.

Another new project this Season is for young instrumentalists, led by The Orchestra of Scottish Opera, alongside award-winning composer Karen MacIver and renowned playwright, poet and theatre-maker Martin O’Connor. The players will mentor secondary school-aged pupils, and encourage new ways of thinking about composition, collaboration and creating new work.

Scottish Opera is once again running Memory Spinners for those living with dementia, with the free project using music, storytelling, movement, and visual arts to help Glasgow-based people living with dementia get creative and form new support networks.

The ground-breaking, online programme, Breath Cycle, winner of the 2025 Classical:NEXT Innovation Award, continues to benefit those living with conditions affecting lung health – particularly Long COVID – with free resources that introduce participants to vocal exercises and breathing techniques.

Places are available in Scottish Opera’s Community Choir, open to adults of all ages and conducted by Katy Lavinia Cooper. It gives members an opportunity to sing a wide variety of music in a supportive atmosphere, with sharings each term and chances to perform in full operas.

Resources for The Small Magician, a trauma-aware, inclusive, accessible vocal education resource, are available online. These enable participants to healthily challenge and build their vocal technique and knowledge from the comfort of their own home or chosen space.

Further information on the 2026/27 Season can be found at:

 www.scottishopera.org.uk 

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Sir Thomas Allen’s hit production of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro opens this May

Sir Thomas Allen’s production of Mozart’s comic masterpiece, The Marriage of Figaro, opens in Glasgow this May, before touring to Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Inverness. With 17 performances, including two Access shows, this sumptuous Scottish Opera staging is sung in English and set to reach up to 22,000 audience members all over Scotland.  

A revival of his 2010 show, the great British baritone’s take on this timeless tale of social revolution and change is full of humour, subtlety, and wit. Allen directed recent Scottish Opera productions of The Magic Flute, Don Giovanni and The Barber of Seville, the latter also sung in English with the same central character of Figaro.

Conducted by Dane Lam (Carmen 2023) and Scottish Opera Chorus Director, Susannah Wapshott (Don Pasquale 2024), Mozart’s bubbling score shows him at his theatrical best – with a true genius for getting to the heart of each character.

Simon Higlett’s lavish designs provide the backdrop for this much-loved production of an opera that is as relevant today as ever.

By presenting this revival in English, it lets the laugh-out-loud comedy speak for itself and allows a better understanding of the fast-paced plot and quick-witted dialogue. The storytelling is prioritised, and audiences can better connect with Mozart’s energetic music.  

Power, class, gender and complicated personal relationships, including between the working and upper classes, as well as husband and wife, are all examined during The Marriage of Figaro, which is set over the course of one chaotic day.

The once charming Count Almaviva, now a scheming bully, spends his days pestering the serving girls. Figaro, his head of staff, is engaged to Susanna, but Almaviva has a particular soft spot for her and is doing everything he can to delay their wedding. Figaro, Susanna and Rosina, the Count’s disillusioned wife, conspire to expose his schemes but then Figaro’s old foe Dr Bartolo turns up, with a revelation of his own to tell.

Emerging Artist Edward Jowle (Tristan und Isolde 2026) and Emyr Wyn Jones (Oedipus Rex 2024) share the lead role of Figaro, with Ava Dodd (in her Company debut) and Emerging Artist Kira Kaplan (The Office Party 2026)as Susanna, Ian Rucker (also making his debut) as Count Almaviva, Alexandra Lowe (The French Collection 2022) as Countess Almaviva, and Simone McIntosh (The Barber of Seville 2023), and Emerging Artist Chloe Harris (The Great Wave 2026) alternating Cherubino. Also in the cast are Jeni Bern (The Magic Flute 2019) as Marcellina, Edward Hawkins (The Great Wave 2026)as Doctor Bartolo, Emerging Artist Luvo Maranti (The Great Wave 2026) as Don Basilio/Don Curio and Francis Church as Antonio.

Sir Thomas, who was awarded The Gramophone Lifetime Achievement Award in 2025, and performed in The Marriage of Figaro as a singer at opera houses all over the world during his illustrious career of more than 50 years, said of the production: ‘The Marriage of Figaro, recognised worldwide as one of the greatest cultural creations known to man, returns once more to Scottish Opera.

“But this time it’s different. The opera will be sung in English, making it even more accessible for audience, and personally I am very excited to bring the piece to life for a cast and audiences alike, relishing a language that speaks directly to them. It’s where I began my acquaintance with Figaro nearly sixty years ago. I wonder what I’ve learnt in the meantime?’

Conductor Dane Lam (Music Director of the Hawai’i Symphony Orchestra, Artistic Director of State Opera South Australia, and Principal Conductor & Artistic Director of the Xi’an Symphony Orchestra) said: ‘For me, The Marriage of Figaro is where opera really begins. Mozart marries his musical wit to librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte’s razor-sharp words to create an opera that speaks to us almost 250 years after its premiere.

‘In this era of renewed examination of class, power and privilege, The Marriage of Figaro is unusually timely. Gone are references to Kings and Queens, Gods and Titans. Instead, we have ordinary people, getting one up on ‘the man’. And throughout it all, we have some of most sublime, perfect music that any human has written.’

Scottish Opera is offering two specially created Access performances of The Marriage of Figaro, whichrun alongside the mainstage productions in Glasgow and Edinburgh. With Dementia Friendly values at their core, afternoon Access performances are for those who enjoy a more relaxed opera experience.

With a shorter running time (under two hours including an interval) and tickets at just £12.50, these performances are open to all, including those who may be living with dementia or Long COVID, more comfortable at a shorter show, struggling to get to evening performances, or would simply benefit from the more relaxed atmosphere.

Those who are visually impaired can also take advantage of audio-described performances where live commentary is provided by a specialist audio-describer during the show, describing the action on stage without compromising the music. As part of the experience, a recorded introduction to the opera is available in advance, as well as a live audio introduction before the start of the performance.

At select performances, audiences can book on to a free Touch Tour to become more familiar with the set, scenery, props and costumes. Pre-show talks are also available. These half-hour sessions delve into the detail of each opera, enhancing the audience’s enjoyment and extending knowledge of the piece.

To book tickets for The Marriage of Figaro, visit The Marriage of Figaro | Scottish Opera

Performance Diary

Theatre Royal Glasgow  

9 • 13 • 15 • 20 • 23 May 2026, 7.15pm  

17 May 3pm  

Access performance 22 May 3pm

Festival Theatre Edinburgh  

29 May 7.15pm  

31 May 3pm 

2 • 4 • 6 June 7.15pm 

Access performance 5 June 3pm

His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen  

11 June & 13 June 7.15pm 

Eden Court, Inverness  

18 & 20 June 7.15pm 

Pre-show talks  

15 May, 4 June, 13 June, 20 June  

Audio description / Touch Tours  

17 May, 31 May, 13 June, 20 June

Scottish Opera’s Pop-Up Opera journeys to comunities and schools across Scotland this summer

SCOTTISH OPERA’S POP-UP OPERA JOURNEYS TO COMMUNITIES AND SCHOOLS ACROSS SCOTLAND THIS SUMMER

Scottish Opera’s much-loved Pop-up Opera hits the road from 29 May, with performances of A Little Bit of The Elixir of Love, A Little Bit of Rigoletto, and children’s opera, Be a Sport, Spike!

These 30-minute shows take opera out of the theatre into unexpected places all over the country and are ideal for anyone new to the art form who would like to try a taster of these classics. Whether you’re a seasoned fan or have never seen an opera before, these bite-sized, illustrated shows are designed to be welcoming, understandable, and open to everyone.

Between 2021 and 2025, almost 21,000 people have seen a performance of Pop-up Opera, from Orkney to the Isle of Lewis, across the Central Belt and down to Dumfries & Galloway, at a variety of iconic and surprising locations.  

At last year’s Pop-up Opera tour, one audience member commented that ‘it was great to see and hear world-class musicians and singers in our local environment. It makes it possible for people who cannot travel far.’

Another added that Pop-up Opera ‘was a fun event, the narrator kept the audience involved, musicians were excellent and best of all it was local.’

This summer, audiences can experience opera on a miniature scale at public Pop-up Opera performances at Perth Festival of the Arts and Dumfries & Galloway Arts Festival, and in Tayport, Peebles, Mull, Connel, Fochabers, Stonehaven, New Stevenston, Edinburgh, Falkirk, Giffnock, Barrhead, Linlithgow, Glasgow and Newtongrange, plus free illustration workshops for children aged 4 to 8, at select venues. 

There will also be free school performances in Perth, Dumfries & Galloway, Mull, Dundee, Aberdeenshire, Moray and North Lanarkshire.

Scottish Opera’s productions use ten specially created illustrations to help the performers — storytellers Marc MacKinnon and Dani Heron, along with singers Holly Teague, Marie Claire Breen, Ross Cumming, Colin Murray, cellist Andrew Drummond Huggan and guitarist Sasha Savaloni— present the story.

Scottish Opera’sDirector of Outreach & Education, Jane Davidson MBE said: ‘This year we are once again delighted to be visiting locations and venues across Scotland, swapping theatres for venues right on your doorstep. We are presenting a trio of Pop-up productions, contrasting the ‘light and the dark’ of the operatic repertoire.

‘Be A Sport, Spike! is being performed this summer just in time for the football world cup, and as athletes from all over the world journey to Glasgow for the Commonwealth Games.

“Written for children and their families, we tell the story of Mike ‘The Spike’ McTavish – the world’s greatest all round sporting hero!’ But there is one thing that Spike can’t do – sing! Audiences will join Spike and his friends as he starts to exercise those vocal cords and finds out that a little perseverance can go a long way.

‘Verdi’s most famous revenge tragedy Rigoletto is a gripping tale of deceit and despair, with the title character’s plan to protect his daughter from a villainous Duke going horribly wrong.

‘But love takes many forms in the world of opera – not least in Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love –  a delicately balanced comedy in which a naïve country boy learns that true love is not conjured up with the aid of a magic potion but won through character and perseverance.’

Be A Sport, Spike! was originally commissioned for Festival 2018, the cultural programme surrounding the city’s hosting of the first ever European Championships.

Pop-up Opera, supported by Friends of Scottish Opera,was originally inspired by Japanese storytellers who brought folk tales to villages, just as this tour does.

Tickets are on sale now at www.scottishopera.org.uk/pop-up-opera-2026

You can follow Scottish Opera on Bluesky, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube and Instagram @ScottishOpera

CAST and CREATIVE TEAM

Storytellers                             Marc MacKinnon & Dani Heron

Sopranos  Marie Claire Breen &Holly Teague

Baritones                                Ross Cumming & Colin Murray

CelloAndrew Drummond Huggan  

GuitarSasha Savaloni

Costume Supervisor              Ailsa Munro

Illustrations by                        Agnes Xantippa Boman, Essi Kimpimäki & Iain Piercy.

PERFORMANCE DIARY

Public performances:

Perth Festival of the Arts, St Matthew’s Church, Perth

29 May, 2.30pm (plus free kid’s art workshop at 1pm)

30 May, 2pm & 4pm

The Larick Centre, Tayport

31 May, 12.30pm & 2.30pm (double bill performance). Free kid’s art workshop at 11am.

Dumfries & Galloway Arts Festival, Wigtown County Buildings

6 June, 1pm & 3pm

Eastgate Theatre, Peebles

7 June, 2pm (double bill performance)  

Craignure Village Hall, Isle of Mull

13 June, 2.30pm (double bill performance)  

Connel Village Hall

14 June, 2pm & 4pm (plus free kid’s art workshop at 12.30pm)

Fochabers Public Institute

20 June, 2pm & 4pm (plus free kid’s art workshop at 12.30pm)

Venue to be announced, Stonehaven

21 June (free performance) 

New Stevenston Community Centre

25 June, 7pm (double bill performance)

The Royal Scot Club, Edinburgh

26 June, 7pm (double bill performance)

Portobello Town Hall

27 June, 7pm (double bill performance)

Callander House, Falkirk

28 June, 2pm & 4pm (free outdoor trailer performance). Free kid’s art workshop at 12.30pm

Eastwood House, Giffnock

1 July, 3pm & 7pm (double bill performance)

Arthurlie House, Barrhead

2 July, 1pm & 3pm (Free kid’s art workshop at 11am)

Linlithgow Burgh Halls

3 July, 1pm & 3pm (Free kid’s art workshop at 11am)

Stockingfield Bridge, near Brassey Bridge, Glasgow

4 July, 1pm & 3pm (Free outdoor performances using trailer stage)

National Mining Museum, Midlothian

5 July, 1pm & 3pm (Free kid’s art workshop at 11am).

Grammy-nominated composer creates opera after losing family to addiction

  • Scottish Opera and Opera Ventures Productions present world premiere of The Galloping Cure at Edinburgh International Festival on 9 August 2026

TRAILER AVAILABLE HERE 

PHOTO: Composer Missy Mazzoli. Credit Shervin Lainez

Grammy-nominated composer Missy Mazzoli and Pulitzer Prize-winning librettist Royce Vavrek both lost immediate family members to drug overdoses. Now Scottish Opera and Opera Ventures Productions are bringing their opera about it to the world stage.

The Galloping Cure, premiering at the Edinburgh International Festival this August, tells its story through a darkly seductive allegory: a mysterious carousel that arrives in a struggling rural town, promising to eliminate all pain. The first ride is free. Getting off is much harder.

Conducted by Stuart Stratford and directed by Tony Award-winning Tom Morris (War Horse), the production reunites the creative team behind Breaking the Waves, the 2019 Edinburgh International Festival hit that toured internationally to critical acclaim. They have collaborated with Opera Ventures Productions and Scottish Opera to create what they are calling an opera for the age of addiction.

It is co-commissioned with NorrlandsOperan AB (Sweden, supported by Riksbankens Jubileumsfond), Edinburgh International Festival, and San Francisco Opera. The production will be co-produced with State Opera of South Australia and Canadian Opera Company, ensuring the work reaches audiences worldwide. This unprecedented international coalition of funders spans three continents to back a brand-new work tackling one of the defining crises of our time.

Missy Mazzoli said: ‘The opioid crisis is not merely a headline for me and Royce; we have both lost immediate family to overdoses and other drug-related tragedies, and this crisis reverberates through nearly every aspect of our lives.

‘For years we have wanted to write a work about these experiences, and opera provides a large enough palette to create something that is both compassionate and illuminating.’

Tom Morris said: ‘Missy and Royce are Titans of the 21st century operatic stage. They take no prisoners and will tear up trees to show the world that opera can tell powerful, horrifying, tender stories that resonate to the core of our age.  

‘The Galloping Cure is exactly that and it is a huge honour to work with them on its world premiere production.  And it’s not just an allegory about the opioid crisis. It’s a story about existential pain and the allure of shallow instant solutions. Inspired by texts from Kafka and Karen Russell, they have created a world that is both mythic and brutally recognisable. Their visceral operatic language allows us to hold beauty and horror in the same moment, and to struggle with the compulsions caused by both.’

The story follows Dr Theresa Hart as she struggles to ease the suffering of her community in a forgotten corner of the world. When the charismatic Lucky Mack arrives with his carousel, the town is swept into euphoria. But the ride won’t stop turning.

Mazzoli’s score blends orchestral and choral writing with club rhythms and DJ textures, creating what she describes as ‘a dark parallel to our own world, devastating and gorgeous in equal measure. Swirling brass and winds mesh with exaggerated house music beats, Appalachian folk sounds unite with orchestral strings, and operatic vocals soar over a hallucinatory landscape.’

Leading stage designer Rebecca Ringst matches the ambitious score with cutting-edge immersive audiovisual design evoking a post-industrial town transformed into a fever dream.

Scottish Opera Music Director Stuart Stratford added: ‘Missy Mazzoli’s music has an immediacy that connects with contemporary audiences while remaining deeply operatic. After the success of Breaking the Waves, we knew we wanted to continue our partnership with her. This score is thrilling to conduct. It moves between intimate moments of devastating beauty and these massive, visceral soundscapes that put you right inside the experience of addiction. Working with Opera Ventures and our international partners allows us to take risks on work this ambitious.’

The cast is led by Argentinian mezzo-soprano Daniela Mack in her Scottish Opera debut as Dr Theresa Hart, alongside baritone Justin Austin (Rising Star of the Year at the 2024 International Opera Awards) as Lucky Mack, and Susan Bullock as Ivona Kowalski. They are joined by Scottish Opera Emerging Artists Edward Jowle and Luvo Maranti, and former Emerging Artists Catriona Hewitson, Lea Shaw, and Ross Cumming. The role of Noy is yet to be announced.

The production is inspired by Franz Kafka’s 1917 short story A Country Doctor and based on an original tale by Pulitzer Prize finalist and MacArthur “Genius Grant” recipient Karen Russell. She is the author of short story, Proving Up,which was also made into an opera by Mazzoli and Vavrek in 2016.

Opera Ventures Productions has pioneered a new model for creating opera in the 21st century, bringing together international houses and festivals to share resources and risk. Founded by John Berry (former Artistic Director of English National Opera), Opera Ventures has previously commissioned and produced with partners including Scottish Opera, Greek (Mark-Anthony Turnage) and Ainadamar (Osvaldo Golijov), all of which have toured internationally. In an era when commissioning new opera has become increasingly rare, Opera Ventures has proven it is still possible, if you are willing to think globally.

Scottish Opera has been a key partner in this model, bringing seven years of collaboration with Opera Ventures to The Galloping Cure. As Scotland’s national touring company, Scottish Opera’s workshop and production skills are specifically designed to create sets that adapt to theatres of different sizes, making them the ideal partner for international touring productions. This expertise, combined with Scottish Opera’s track record of championing contemporary opera, has been crucial to bringing Mazzoli’s ambitious vision to life.

‘Commissioning new opera is one of the hardest and most essential challenges the art form faces’, said John Berry. ‘Opera can be as immediate and relevant as cinema, and The Galloping Cure reminds us of opera’s communicative power through the combination of music, theatre, and design. This piece exists only because ambitious organisations across continents have chosen to back a brand-new project with something urgent to say.’

Performances of The Galloping Cure are on 9, 11 and 12 August 2026, at Edinburgh International Festival.

Tickets are available from www.scottishopera.org.uk/shows/the-galloping-cure/

Supported by a syndicate of donors including Sarah and Howard Solomon Foundation, Susie Thompson, Eli & Ashley Wald, Malcolm Herring, Sally Groves in memory of Dennis Marks and the New Commissions Circle.

www.scottishopera.org.uk

You can follow Scottish Opera on BlueSky, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube @ScottishOpera

Cast

Theresa Albertine Hart, The Doctor               Daniela Mack

Lucky Mack                                                     Justin Austin

Ivona Kowalski                                                Susan Bullock

Samatha (Sam)                                               Edward Jowle

Megan (Meg)                                                  Catriona Hewitson

Mayor                                                              Luvo Maranti

Zoe                                                                  Rosie Lavery

Erin                                                                  Lea Shaw

Shawna                                                           Donna Bateman

Duane                                                             Connor James Smith

Jackie Boy                                                      Frank Church

Warren                                                            Ross Cumming

Creative team

Conductor                                                       Stuart Stratford

Composer                                                       Missy Mazzoli

Libretto                                                            Royce Vavrek

Original story                                                  Karen Russell

Director &Dramaturg                                     Tom Morris

Set and props designer                                  Rebecca Ringst

Associate Director & Movement Director       Leah Hausmann

Costume Designer                                         Christina Cunningham

Lighting Designer                                           Lucy Carter

Projection Designer                                        Will Duke

Beats by                                                          Blume and Lorna Dune
Mixed by                                                         Lorna Dune

Performance diary

9,11 &12 August 7pm

Festival Theatre Edinburgh

Scottish Opera presents two special performances of Wagner’s Tristan Und Isolde this March

On 7 and 11 March in Glasgow and Edinburgh, Scottish Opera is presenting two opera in concert performances of Richard Wagner’s timeless tale of forbidden love, Tristan und Isolde.

With the Glasgow show almost sold out, and Edinburgh tickets going fast, this is a special chance to see Wagner’s epic story of longing and death, which he himself described as his ‘most audacious and original work’.

Conducted by Scottish Opera Music Director, Stuart Stratford, and directed by Justin Way, noted Wagnerian Gwyn Hughes Jones (Tosca 2019) brings his signature Tristan to Scotland for the first time. Acclaimed Dutch soprano Annemarie Kremer makes her Company debut as Princess Isolde.

In their Company debuts, the supporting cast includes mezzo-soprano Khatuna Mikaberidze as Isolde’s maid Brangäne, and Hansung Yoo as Kurwenal. Dingle Yandell (Daphne 2023) is King Marke and Mark Le Brocq (The Makropulos Affair, 2025) is Melot. They are joined by former Emerging Artist Shengzhi Ren (Oedipus Rex 2024)and current Emerging Artist, Edward Jowle (La bohème 2025).

Justin Way, who directed all seven of Wagner’s operas in concerts at the BBC Proms in 2013, brings his expertise in concert staging to probe every dramatic nuance of these complicated characters. He has previously directed productions for companies including Opéra National de Bordeaux, and Opera di Roma.

Costume designs are by Lorna Price, Scottish Opera’s Head of Costume, and lighting designs are by Lizzie Powell, who has worked on previous productions for the Company including Falstaff in 2021 and A Midsummer Night’s Dream in 2022.

A medieval tale based on a Celtic legend and inspired by the German poem by Gottfried von Strassburg, it follows Cornish knight Tristan, who is sent to Ireland to fetch Princess Isolde for marriage to his uncle, King Marke. However, when Tristan and Isolde accidentally drink a love portion on the journey home and fall in love, it sets off a tragic chain of events.

First performed in 1865, the opera features the famous ‘Tristan chord’, which is initially heard in the prelude and left unresolved until the very end. It has notably been included in various films including Vertigo in 1958, Tender is the Night in 1962 and more recently in the 2011 Lars von Triers film, Melancholia.

Due to the extended runtime, this performance will begin earlier than usual, starting at 3pm in Glasgow, and 5.30pm in Edinburgh.

Stuart Stratford said: ‘If Tristan und Isolde is not the Mount Everest of opera, it is certainly one of the highest and trickier ascents of the Himalayas requiring unparalleled feats of bravery and stamina from all – including the listener!

“At over four hours of music, it has its own way of slowly unfolding, which is at first fascinating, then revealing and finally devastating. Oh, and did I say that it preludes the most decadent period in classical music and indeed seeds the very destruction of tonality. I don’t think you should miss it!’

Director Justin Way said: ‘My job as director is to facilitate the connection that the artists have with their characters and the score and free them up to explore, so that we create a vivid world where the audience writes their own mis-en-scene. We can then allow the metaphor and poetry of Wagner’s dramaturgy to fill the space. Tristan und Isolde could be summarised in a very brief paragraph, but the philosophy is enormous.

‘It’s not about action – each act starts and ends with action, but the rest is self-discovery and struggles with needs and desires. The orchestra tells you what to do. Crisis, serenity, nostalgia, and regret are all written there. Every single psychological colour is in the score.’

Scottish Opera ensures world-class opera remains accessible to everyone across Scotland. At these performances of Tristan und Isolde, tickets at Usher Hall Edinburgh are priced from £20, and from £23 at Theatre Royal Glasgow, with almost 40% of tickets £45 or under at both venues. £15 tickets are available for under-26s and students, as well as concessions for Registered Unemployed, Students, Registered Disabled, over 60s and groups.

The Company has provided over 1500 free tickets to schools since 2022, often introducing pupils to live opera for the first time, and over 1,600 free tickets have been distributed to New Scots communities across Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness and Edinburgh. Free tickets are also available for schools, colleges, and community groups, with travel subsidies where needed.

Tristan und Isolde is supported by The Scottish Opera Endowment Trust.

Tickets are available now at Tristan und Isolde | Scottish Opera

Scottish Opera’s Primary Schools Tour sets sail with The Dragon of the Western Sea

Scottish Opera’s much-loved, annual Primary Schools Tour starts in February with The Dragon of the Western Sea, and a new digital version of the show is now available alongside the in-person tour.

Running through the Spring and Summer terms, the tour visits schools all over Scotland as well as in Newcastle and helps teachers deliver aspects of A Curriculum for Excellence.

It gives up to 100 P5-P7s the opportunity to be involved in a special performance day, during which a team of Scottish Opera Teaching Artists help them stage their own all-singing, all-dancing 30-minute show, with full rental of props and costumes. Alternatively, it can be facilitated entirely within the classroom by teachers themselves.

For both in-person and digital, schools are provided with high quality, online teaching resources in advance, including a teachers’ support pack, to help introduce the songs from The Dragon of the Western Sea to pupils.

Last toured in 2018, The Dragon of the Western Sea was composed by Alan Penman with words by Ross Stenhouse, and tells the story of the exciting voyages of 14th century Chinese commander, Admiral Zheng He, who set sail with his vast fleet and 28,000 crew, from China to Indonesia, India, Arabia and the grasslands of Africa in search of trade, treaties and treasure.

When the great Dragon Throne Emperor of China, Zhu Di, has decided it is time his nation expanded its influence beyond the edge of the known world and into the mysterious Western Sea, he assembles his mighty ships and fills them with all the riches of China, enough to buy the gratitude and friendship of those unknown lands beyond the setting sun. Only one man could be trusted to lead such a dangerous and important mission, the great Admiral Zheng He, the Dragon of the Western Sea.

Scottish Opera’s children’s operas make learning fun and creative. Over the years, the Primary Schools Tour has inspired over 850,000 children across all 32 Local Authority areas in Scotland.

The Dragon of the Western Sea forms part of a suite of Scottish Opera’s digital offerings for schools, which includes The Curse of MacCabbra Opera House, How The Dragon Was Made, Vikings! The Quest for the Dragon’s Treasure and The Tale o’ Tam o’ Shanter.

This online delivery method — which includes Scottish Opera singers appearing on screen in classrooms to sing alongside the class — makes the project even easier and more affordable for teachers to engage with, particularly in those schools without specialist music teachers at primary level.

With 50-plus years of experience in classrooms, Scottish Opera’s Outreach and Education Programme has developed this approach because it recognised that the in-person learning Primary Schools Tour experience reaches capacity very quickly each year, so a complementary strand of the programme has been created in the form of a set of exclusivelyonline resources — so many more schools across Scotland can participate — and at a much lower cost per pupil.

Scottish Opera’s Director of Education and Outreach, Jane Davidson said: ‘With The Dragon of the Western Sea, the composer and librettist were inspired by this real-life story to create a dramatic tale of adventure on the high seas.

“The plot gives us a wonderful opportunity to introduce Scottish primary pupils to a different perspective on the age of discovery. Admiral He predated the journeys made by European explorers by many years.

“Using a blend of musical styles as well as key words and phrases from China, Africa and India, the opera provides a fascinating snapshot of the history and customs of other cultures in an appealing and accessible way.

“We are delighted we have been able to re-imagine and expand the tour by offering a digital version of The Dragon of the Western Sea, to make it even more accessible and adaptable for all schools in Scotland to take part.”

The Dragon of the Western Sea tour is kindly supported by The David and June Gordon Memorial Trust, The Pear Tree Fund for Music, The W M Mann Foundation and Scottish Opera’s Education Angels.

For more information, visit Primary Schools Tour | Scottish Opera

Scottish Opera brings The Office Party to 18 communities the length and breadth of the country this Spring

Tickets are on sale now for Scottish Opera’s Opera Highlights The Office Party, which journeys to 18 venues across Scotland this Spring.

Bringing world-class opera direct to communities, the production hits the road from 3 February to 14 March.

Telling the story of a raucous office party and a messy love triangle, it features four talented singers and a pianist and is the perfect opportunity to hear extracts from much-loved classics and lesser-known treasures.

This production is woven together with music from Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci, Gounod’s Romeo and Juliette, Massenet’s Werther, Handel’s Alcina, Strauss II’s Die Fledermaus and Samuel Barber’s one-act opera, A Hand of Bridge, all sung in English.

Transforming smaller venues into a local opera house, the show travels to Glasgow, Tillicoultry, Helensburgh, Town Yetholm, Newton Stewart, Dunlop, Dalmally, Dornie, Stornoway, Gairloch, Newtonmore, Banchory, Fraserburgh, Cromarty, Orkney, Wick, Lairg and Bathgate. Scottish Opera’s extensive touring programme is one of the largest of any European opera company, ensuring performances are within reach of as many of Scotland’s dispersed population as possible.

Created specifically for Scottish Opera each season, performing in The Office Party are 2025/26 Emerging Artists soprano Kira Kaplan (Trial by Jury & A Matter of Misconduct! 2025),baritone Daniel Barrett (L’heure espagnole & The Bear 2025), tenor Connor James Smith (The Merry Widow 2025) and mezzo-soprano Alexandria Moon, who is making her Company debut. Accompanying the singers on piano is Music Director Toby Stanford, Emerging Artist Repetiteur.

The show’s Director is Emma Doherty who last worked with Scottish Opera on the Outreach & Education show, The Giant’s Harp, and was Assistant Director in 2024 on Oedipus Rex and Marx in London! Designs are by the award-winning Kenneth MacLeod, who worked on last Season’s Opera Highlights.

Emma Doherty said: ‘It was fantastic to see the audience reactions to our production this autumn, which showcases some beautiful music and deals with the themes of forbidden love and deception.

“I am looking forward to getting back into the rehearsal room with the new cast, to prepare for the spring tour. In the show, designed by the brilliant Kenneth MacLeod, audiences can expect to see four colleagues with complicated love triangles who are gearing up for their office party!’ 

The operatic snapshots in the Spring tour are curated by Fiona MacSherry, Scottish Opera’s Head of Music, and her choices of music make the story immediate and accessible for the audience, from teens to grandparents, opera buffs to complete newcomers.

The Spring tour follows a successful Autumn production, which visited 17 venues all over Scotland, includingEast Kilbride, Nairn, Castlebay, Lochranza, Johnstone, and Edinburgh.

Over 4000 people of all ages attended the Spring 2025 Opera Highlights tour, with audience members commenting how it was ‘wonderful that Scottish Opera comes to some of the more remote and rural areas’, bringing the show ‘to our doorstep’.

Audiences have praised the Autumn Opera Highlights tour, with one member saying they “loved every minute” of the show, and commented on the “excellent production, good acting and, of course, superb singing.”

Another “liked the ingenuity of building a story from excerpts” adding the “singing was wonderful”.

Opera Highlights is supported by Friends of Scottish Opera and JTH Charitable Trust.

Tickets are on sale now at Touring Scotland: Opera On Your Doorstep: The Office Party | Scottish Opera

Scottish Opera’s production of Puccini’s production of heartbreaking masterpiece LA BOHÈME tours 

Renowned director/designer team Renaud Doucet and André Barbe return to Scottish Opera this autumn with their acclaimed production of Giacomo Puccini’s ravishing classic, La bohème.

Opening on 11 October at Theatre Royal Glasgow, the production tours to Aberdeen, Inverness and Edinburgh and features an innovative dual-time concept that moves between the flea markets of 1920s Paris and the modern-day French capital.

It takes inspiration from the Jazz Age of Josephine Baker, the American dancer, singer, actress, spy and civil rights activist.

This Barbe & Doucet show is full of their trademark colour, character and style, and tells the story of four struggling bohemians, reimagined as part of the ‘Lost Generation’, the collection of writers and artists drawn to Paris after World War I, whose lives are changed when they meet a seamstress called Mimì.

A blossoming romance becomes short-lived when they discover that Mimì is ill. Struggling to survive in the lavish yet unforgiving city, these charismatic characters are met with the harsh realities of poverty and fortune.

The design emphasises the contrast between the colourful carnival atmosphere and the starving artists’ lives, creating a production that balances sentimentality with the bustling energy of Paris across different eras.

Scottish Opera Music Director, Stuart Stratford, who is celebrating ten years with the Company, conducts Hye-Youn Lee (pictured) (La traviata 2024)as Mimì, a role she originated in the 2017 production of La bohème.

Also in the cast are Mario Chang as Rodolfo in his Scottish Opera debut, Roland Wood (The Strauss Collection 2025) as Marcello, Rhian Lois (The Merry Widow 2025) as Musetta, Callum Thorpe (Oedipus Rex 2024) as Colline, Emerging Artist Edward Jowle (Trial by Jury & A Matter of Misconduct! 2025) as Schaunard and Jamie MacDougall (Trial by Jury & A Matter of Misconduct! 2025) as Alcindoro / Benoît.

Barbe & Doucet, who last worked with Scottish Opera on the 2024 production of Donizetti’s Don Pasquale said: ‘The story of La bohème is one we can all relate to.

“It seemed important to us to explore the theme of illness since, as a society, we are all under the weather at the moment and in need of healing. The flea market setting represents a little bit of what we are up against today – we seem to live life too fast, and, through antiques, people get a sense of going back to a less hectic time.

“This opera is not about nostalgia ­­­­­­–La bohème is not a museum piece – the story is timeless. Along with meeting new artists, we look forward very much to revisiting the production with Hye-Youn Lee with whom we had so much pleasure collaborating on the original staging.”

With tickets starting from just £23 – £26.50, and 40% of all seats priced under £50, Scottish Opera ensures world-class opera remains accessible to everyone across Scotland.

In addition, £15 tickets are available for under-26s and students at every performance. Over 800 free tickets have been provided to schools since 2022, often introducing pupils to live opera for the first time, and over 1,600 free tickets have been distributed to New Scots communities across Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness and Edinburgh.

Free tickets are also available for schools, colleges, and community groups, with travel subsidies where needed.

To bring even more opera to Scottish audiences, La bohème is presented alongside the double bill of Maurice Ravel’s L’heure espagnole and William Walton’s The Bear. These concert stagings of two caustic comedies of infidelity are performed on the La bohème set and conducted by French opera expert Alexandra Cravero (Thérèse 2022). The director is Jacopo Spirei, and designs are by Kenneth MacLeod. 

Opening on 18 October in Glasgow before touring to Edinburgh, these shows feature a cast that includes current and former Emerging Artists.

Specially created Access performances of La bohème run alongside the mainstage productions in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

With Dementia Friendly values at their core, Afternoon Access performances are for those who enjoy a more relaxed opera experience. Tickets are priced at just £12.50 (free for carers), and these performances are open to all, including those who may be living with dementia or Long COVID, more comfortable at a shorter show, struggling to get to evening performances, or would simply benefit from the more relaxed atmosphere.

Those who wish to discover more about how La bohème was created can attendPre-show Talks in all four cities on the tour, which delve into the detail of the opera. Tickets are free but should be booked in advance.

Audience members with a visual impairment can enjoy the full opera experience at Audio-described performances, which have a live commentary describing the action on stage without compromising the music.

At these performances, there are also free Touch Tours of the set, and a live audio introduction before the start of the performance.

La bohème is supported by The Scottish Opera Syndicate.

www.scottishopera.org.uk

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Creative team

Conductor                                           Stuart Stratford & Toby Hession
Stage Direction, Sets & Costumes     Barbe & Doucet

Lighting Designer                                Guy Simard

Cast

Mimì                                                    Hye-Youn Lee
Rodolfo                                               Mario Chang
Marcello                                              Roland Wood
Musetta                                               Rhian Lois
Colline                                                 Callum Thorpe
Schaunard                                          Edward Jowle
Alcindoro / Benoît                               Jamie MacDougall
                                     

Performance Diary

Theatre Royal Glasgow  

11 • 15 • 21 • 23 • 25 October 7.15pm  

19 October 3pm  

Relaxed Access performance 24 October 3pm

His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen  

30 October 7.15pm  

1 November 3pm 

Eden Court, Inverness  

6 November, 7.15pm

8 November, 5pm  

Festival Theatre Edinburgh  

14 • 18 • 20 • 22 November 7.15pm  

16 November 3pm  

Relaxed Access performance 21 November 3pm

Pre-show talks  

23 October, 1 November, 8 November, 20 November  

Audio description / Touch Tours  

19 October, 1 November, 8 November, 16 November

Scottish Opera presents Double Bill at Lammermuir Festival and also in Glasgow and Edinburgh

On 4 September, Scottish Opera’s 2025/26 Season opens at Lammermuir Festival in East Lothian with a performance of two caustic comedies of infidelity: Maurice Ravel’s L’heure espagnole (marking 150 years since the composer’s birth) and William Walton’s The Bear.

This irresistible evening of musical mischief takes place at St Mary’s Parish Church in Haddington and is conducted by French opera expert Alexandra Cravero (Thérèse 2022.) Jacopo Spirei, who worked extensively with renowned opera director Sir Graham Vick, directs this new concert staging, reimagining these operas as short, comic television episodes. 

Designs are by the award-winning Kenneth MacLeod, who is also working with the Company this Season on Opera Highlights.

This concert continues Scottish Opera’s long-running partnership with Lammermuir Festival and demonstrates its commitment to exploring and championing lesser-known pieces by great composers.

There are further opportunities to see Ravel’s and Walton’s mini masterpieces at Theatre Royal Glasgow in October and Festival Theatre Edinburghin November.

These performances, supported byThe Scottish Opera Endowment Trust, feature former Emerging and Associate Artist and Education Artist-in-Residence Lea Shaw; Chloe Harris and Edward Jowle, returning as 2025/26 Emerging Artists; Company favourite Jamie MacDougall; and 2025/26 Emerging Artists Daniel Barrett and Luvo Maranti. They are accompanied by The Orchestra of Scottish Opera.

Ravel’s Spanish-influenced L’heure espagnole sees a turn from melodramatic to farcical. A clockmaker’s serially unfaithful wife must come up with increasingly creative ways to hide her lovers over 21 fast-paced scenes.

The Bear, a witty one-act opera by English composer William Walton based on a Chekhov play, finds a widow confronting her late husband’s legacy — and serial adultery — when a creditor comes knocking.

While the two composers’ sound worlds are unique, they both examine the workings of imperfect human hearts with wry empathy.

Jacopo Spirei said: ‘I wanted to explore how two women, one trapped in time, the other in mourning, fight to reclaim control of their own narratives. L’heure espagnole and The Bear may be comedies, but beneath the farce lies a sharp, emotional truth about independence, desire, and transformation.

‘By reframing L’heure espagnole and The Bear as if they were episodes in your Netflix queue, we hold up a screen to modern life, where emotions are edited, stories are bingeable, and even grief gets a promo. But what happens when women stop playing the roles they’ve been given?’

Alexandra Cravero said: ‘L’heure espagnole and The Bear are both about women in love and highlight the differences between Ravel’s French style and the British style of Walton.

“The French style invites us to savour the sensuality of orchestral colour, enhanced with a touch of Spanish elegance. In contrast, the British style surprises with its rhythmic intensity. Though composed 60 years apart, these two works humorously explore the complexities of love, across centuries and civilisations.’

James Waters, co-director of Lammermuir Festival said: ‘Over the last 8 years, our partnership with Scottish Opera has brought festival goers a fantastic variety of works and is always a much talked about highlight of the festival.

“This year, as the centrepiece of our tribute to Ravel in his 150th anniversary year, Scottish Opera’s concert staging of his one-act opera L’heure espagnole is certain to be a huge hit.

“In addition, this double bill promises more with Walton’s one-act chamber opera, The Bear. It’s a great programme, a night of operatic comedy and ravishing music and we look forward to being entertained and wowed once again.”

At the Glasgow and Edinburgh performances of the double bill, tickets start from just £23, and with 50% of seats on sale priced under £40, Scottish Opera ensures world-class opera remains accessible to everyone across Scotland.

In addition,£15 are tickets available for under-26s and students at every performance. Over 800 free tickets have been provided to schools since 2022, often introducing pupils to live opera for the first time, and over 1,600 free tickets have been distributed to New Scots communities across the Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness and Edinburgh. Free tickets are also available for schools, colleges, and community groups, with travel subsidies where needed.

In December, Scottish Opera’s Opera is Concert series continues at Usher Hall Edinburgh with Tchaikovsky’s Heroines & Heroes. This features selections from Eugene Onegin, Iolanta, and The Maid of Orleans conducted by Scottish Opera Music Director Stuart Stratford.

With a cast including Lauren Fagan (Ainadamar 2022), Josef Jeongmeen Ahn (Don Pasquale 2024), and Natalia Kutateladze and Robert Lewis in their Company debuts, this concert features extended excerpts from three of the iconic Russian composer’s best works, which all centre complex and richly drawn women.

Eugene Onegin is a deeply moving tale of unrequited love and high society life; The Maid of Orleans is a romantic retelling of the story of Joan of Arc; and Iolanta, the last opera Tchaikovsky composed, is a dreamlike fairy tale of a blind princess discovering the world outside her isolated garden home. Allowing audiences to discover his music — which blended French and German influences with Russian traditions —  beyond The Nutcracker, this is the perfect winter night out.

L’heure espagnole & The Bear and Tchaikovsky’s Heroines & Heroes are supported by The Scottish Opera Endowment Trust and Friends of Scottish Opera.

Tickets for L’heure espagnole & The Bear, and Tchaikovsky’s Heroines & Heroes are available from www.scottishopera.org.uk

Double bill creative team

Conductor                               Alexandra Cravero

Concert Staging                      Jacopo Spirei

Designer                                  Kenneth MacLeod

Lighting Designer                    Andrew Burnside

Cast of L’heure espagnole

Concepción                             Lea Shaw
Torquemada                            Jamie MacDougall
Ramiro                                     Daniel Barrett*
Don Iñigo Gomez                    Edward Jowle*
Gonzalve                                 Luvo Maranti*

Cast of The Bear

Yelena Ivanovna Popova                    Chloe Harris*

Grigory Stepanovich Smirnov            Daniel Barrett*

Luka                                                    Edward Jowle*

*Scottish Opera Emerging Artist 2025/26

Performance Diary

Lammermuir Festival  

St Mary’s Church, Haddington 

4 September 7.30pm  

Theatre Royal Glasgow  

18 & 22 October 7.15pm  

Festival Theatre Edinburgh  

15 November 7.15pm  

Pre-show talks  – 22 October & 15 November  

Audio description / Touch Tours  – 22 October & 15 November 

Opera Highlights tour unites four singers and a pianist in one-of-a-kind show this autumn

Saturday 22 November: Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh 7.30pm

Tickets are now on sale for the new production of Scottish Opera’s Opera Highlights, which hits the road from 2 October to 22 November, bringing world-class opera to 17 communities across the country.

The audience will follow the story of four very different characters, watching how their personal relationships intertwine at the office party.

With no shortage of messy romance and an unforgettable work soiree, this will be a night of opera to remember!

Performing in this one-of-a-kind show, created specifically for Scottish Opera each season, are 2025/26 Emerging Artists mezzo-soprano Chloe Harris and tenor Luvo Maranti, along with soprano Ceferina Penny and baritone James Geidt, both making their Company debuts. Accompanying the singers on piano is Music Director Meghan Rhoades, Emerging Artist Repetiteur.

Transforming smaller venues into a local opera house, the show travels to East Kilbride, Ayr, Gartmore, Brechin, Ellon, Crail, Castle Douglas, Melrose, Crawfordjohn, Birnam, Nairn, Lochinver, Glenuig, Castlebay (a return visit following the Company’s Opera Highlights performance in February being cancelled due to bad weather), Lochranza, Johnstone, and Edinburgh.

Scottish Opera’s extensive touring programme is one of the largest of any European opera company, ensuring performances are within reach of as many of Scotland’s dispersed population as possible.

Over 4000 people of all ages attended the Spring Opera Highlights tour this year, with audience members commenting how it was ‘wonderful that Scottish Opera comes to some of the more remote and rural areas’, bringing the show ‘to our doorstep’.

The show’s Director is Emma Doherty who last worked with Scottish Opera on the Outreach & Education show, The Giant’s Harp, and was Assistant Director in 2024 on Oedipus Rex and Marx in London! Designs are by the award-winning Kenneth MacLeod, who worked on last Season’s Opera Highlights.

The playlist cleverly combines a fabulous collection of much-loved classics with a treasure trove of lesser-known pieces. These include music from Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci, Gounod’s Romeo and Juliette, Massenet’s Werther, Handel’s Alcina, Strauss II’s Die Fledermaus and Samuel Barber’s one-act opera, A Hand of Bridge.

These operatic snapshots are curated by Fiona MacSherry, Scottish Opera’s Head of Music. All are sung in English or an English translation, making the story immediate and accessible for the audience.

Director Emma Doherty said: ‘I am delighted to be directing the next Opera Highlights tour, which showcases some beautiful music and deals with the themes of forbidden love and deception. In the show, designed by the brilliant Kenneth MacLeod, audiences can expect to see four colleagues with complicated love triangles who are gearing up for their office party!’ 

While on tour with Opera Highlights, Scottish Opera is running school and community workshops, with more details to be announced soon. At these free ‘How to stage an opera’ interactive sessions, those attending will learn about the process of powerful storytelling through opera, using scenes from the tour as inspiration.

The creative team will explore how music can illustrate dramatic context on stage, and the mechanics of staging and directing scenes from an opera.

Participants learn how singers use their voices and stage techniques to generate atmosphere and create mood to develop character, and how basic props can support the time, location and even the weather in which the story is unfolding.

These sessions, lasting approximately one hour, are open to all ages, and no previous experience is required.

Opera Highlights goes on the road again in Spring 2026, when Emerging Artist Repetiteur Toby Stanford accompanies singers including Emerging Artists Daniel Barrett and Kira Kaplan with Alexandria Moon and Connor James Smith. 

The tour runs from 3 February to 14 March, with performances in Glasgow, Tillicoultry, Helensburgh, Town Yetholm, Newton Stewart, Dunlop, Dalmally, Dornie, Stornoway, Gairloch, Newtonmore, Banchory, Fraserburgh, Cromarty, Orkney, Wick, Lairg, and Bathgate.

Opera Highlights is supported by Friends of Scottish Opera and JTH Charitable Trust.

 Tickets are on sale now at Opera Highlights 2025/26 | Scottish Opera