Eight must-see operas to book tickets for this summer 2024
Verdi: Un giorno di regno
A chance to see a rare comedy by Verdi, an opera buffa about a man thrust into the role of being a king for a day, and the romantic complications that ensue.
Garsington Opera, Wormsley Estate, Buckinghamshire (garsingtonopera.org), June 29-July 22
Puccini: Edgar
A knight must choose between vice and virtue, in this semi-staging of Puccini’s early opera Edgar set in medieval Flanders – marking the centenary of the composer’s death.
Opera Holland Park, London W8 (operahollandpark.com), July 2-6
Handel: Il Trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno
In this wonderful philosophical debate, personifications of truth, deceit and beauty argue it out in music of exquisite quality, performed by the Early Opera Company under Christian Curnyn.
Buxton International Festival, Buxton Opera House (buxtonfestival.co.uk), July 7-18
Leoncavallo: I Pagliacci and Wolf-Ferrari: Il segreto di Susanna
A double bill coupling the famous tragedy of the clown Pagliacci with the comedy of Susanna’s secret which is (spoiler alert) not that she has a lover – but that she smokes.
Opera Holland Park, London W8 (operahollandpark.com), July 17-August 3
Bizet: Carmen
The tragedy of Carmen has been the opera of choice this year at Glyndebourne and Covent Garden; now Edinburgh brings a French version from the Paris Opéra-Comique with Gaëlle Arquez in the title role.
Edinburgh International Festival, Festival Theatre (eif.co.uk), August 4-8
Purcell: The Fairy Queen
The leading French ensemble Les Arts Florissants under Paul Agnew bring Purcell’s dazzling sequence of A Midsummer Night’s Dream-inspired music to the Proms, a feast of music in a staging with hip-hop dance.
BBC Proms, Royal Albert Hall, London SW7 (bbc.co.uk/proms), August 6
Stravinsky: Oedipus Rex
Scottish Opera’s innovative show for the Edinburgh Festival is an immersive promenade staging of Stravinsky’s drama with a 100-strong community chorus.
Edinburgh International Festival, National Museum of Scotland (eif.co.uk), August 12-19
Mozart: The Marriage of Figaro
One of the greatest operas receives a radical contemporary makeover in this German production – expect surprises, including a new character. The dissident Russian filmmaker and playwright Kirill Serebrennikov directs the Komische Oper from Berlin.
Edinburgh International Festival, Festival Theatre (eif.co.uk), August 16-18
