‘A quarantine exemption means we can attract world-class talent’: the Royal Opera House returns

Yesterday, the Royal Opera House announced its big comeback in January 2021: a revival of Jonathan Kent’s production of Tosca, starring the revered soprano Anna Netrebko. This will be the first fully staged opera at Covent Garden since the March lockdown.

“Tosca is what opera’s all about,” enthuses Oliver Mears, the venue’s director of opera. “It’s got drama, fantastic melodies and music, it’s a great showcase for people who can sing and act, and it’s one of the most famous works in the repertoire. It’s a great way for us to return at scale. This will be classic, blood-and-guts opera at Covent Garden.”

The Russian-Austrian singer Netrebko is thankfully recovered after suffering from Covid-related pneumonia in September. The three Tosca casts also feature leading international talent like Yusif Eyvazov, Gerald Finley, Saioa Hernández, Yonghoon Lee, Kostas Smoriginas, Malin Byström, Freddie De Tommaso, and Michael Volle.

The government’s recent decision to exempt elite artists from quarantine when travelling to the UK (which already applied to athletes) proved vital to that programming, says Mears. “Netrebko is one of the great singers of the current era, and this is a fabulous showcase for her - and for all of these exciting artists. Having a quarantine exemption makes a massive difference: it means we can attract world-class talent and make it work with their schedules. It’s a really positive development that the arts are now in alignment with elite sport.”

Originally, the Opera House had another work planned for that January slot, but “we had to think carefully about the chorus,” explains Mears. “With social distancing, we can’t have a chorus on stage in the way we always have, and there are only a few operas that can work with the chorus cut or offstage.”

For Tosca, they’re going the latter route. “They’ll be in a different location and piped into the auditorium. The chorus involvement is quite minimal, comparatively - we only have to restage part of Act I. So this is a way of doing it that keeps everyone safe.”

It’s not a musical loss either, argues Mears. “There will be this overwhelming sonic effect. No one is going to feel shortchanged.”

They do have to reduce the orchestra size, with social distancing, but are still managing to accommodate 45 players. “We’ve been hearing from the continent of venues doing bel canto operas with just five or six musicians - that’s not a route we wanted to go down. Of course we want to get back to full forces, but these musicians will be playing out of their skins.”

Is Mears feeling confident about a full return soon? “Yes. We’re done with the time of multiple contingency plans. This is now just Plan A: a trajectory towards normality. That means full houses, full numbers on stage and in the pit. If what the government is saying is right, with the vaccine rollout, we’re confident by the spring that we could be in that place: social distancing relaxed, and our productions played as originally conceived.”

It could, he acknowledges, “be a slow and gradual process. We can’t wait to get back to the full repertory model, but that won’t be immediately.”

Another factor is how confident people will be about returning to central London, and to crowded venues. “No one knows how audiences will feel until we’re able to offer the full capacity we usually do,” points out Mears. “Anecdotally, it sounds like there’s a real division between those who can’t wait to get back, no matter how old they are, no matter whether they’ve got the vaccine, and those who are more wary.

“The proof is in the pudding. Maybe people will be tentative to start with. All we can do is offer a really safe environment, with protocols on stage, backstage and front of house. People can feel reassured that everything has been scrutinised meticulously.”

There may be “an overlap period,” he thinks, “when the vaccine has been rolled out to the most vulnerable, but we still have hand sanitisers and masks, to keep people feeling safe. My instinct is that the vaccine on its own won’t be enough. We’ll have to be cautious still.”

However, he has no doubt that people will want to return. “Opera, at its heart, is communal. It’s the collective experience of something extraordinary, and that can never be repeated in exactly the same way. Every night is different.”

It’s a whole experience, too, he observes. “You can share your opinions with others, get a drink, set the world to rights. Also, just coming to the Opera House is part of it: being in this beautiful building, with its 300-year-old history, and the unbelievably special atmosphere - which is unlike any other opera house in the world.”

Of course, there is a financial cost to their caution. “We’re on 40 per cent audience capacity for Tosca - normally, we work on the basis of 96 per cent. But we have an absolute responsibility to be out there, presenting work, even if the finances are tough. Those 900 or so people who watch this live show will appreciate it all the more.”

The Opera House is planning new productions for 2021, as well as classic ones, he reveals. “We can’t stand still - we have to push the art form forward, and make these works live again.” The first of those new ventures will be announced before Christmas.

They have a duty to audiences, too, after a long, hard year. “Opera and ballet really put you through the ringer. People need that. Even if it’s tragic, and you’re in floods of tears at the end, you feel purged - and there’s something transcendent about that experience. The arts can come to the rescue emotionally. We’ve had so much turbulence, suffering and uncertainty. Our artistic institutions can be anchors in a stormy time.”

Tosca is at the Royal Opera House Jan 13-March 13 2021, and livestreamed on Jan 22. General booking opens on Dec 22; roh.org.uk