Classical and Contemporary Opera in Covent Garden

Richard Thomas is to premiere his latest contemporary opera production at the Royal Opera House in February of next year. The mastermind behind the controversial and award-winning "Jerry Springer The Musical" will be unveiling his latest show which takes a look at the life of glamour model Anna Nicole Smith. "Anna Nicole" will star Dutch soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek and be conducted by the Royal Opera House music director Anthony Pappano. In an interview with Whatsonstage.com Thomas revealed he has a fascination with "trashy" celebrity figures like Anna Nicole. In the interview he went on to say "Anna Nicole Smith's tragic life story is a classic American tale about celebrity and the price you pay for trying to escape your roots - it's intrinsically operatic!"

The Royal Opera House director of opera, Elaine Padmore, is quoted in The Guardian stating "it is not going to be tawdry; it is going to be witty, clever, thoughtful and sad." Padmore compared the work to Zeit-oper, the German subgenre of opera which was popular in the 1920s and 30s, in which socio-political issues of the times were depicted. She went on to say that "opera suffers from an image of being old, European, archaic. New works on popular topics are good". This kind of production places the Royal Opera House as a leader in innovative and contemporary opera productions, and Padmore hopes it will appeal to a wide range of audience.

The well established cultural venue in London's Covent Garden has plenty of other contemporary productions in the new 2010/2011 season, complimenting its repertoire of classical opera such as Rigoletto, Aida and favourites such as Bizet's Carmen. Music director Pappano has recently featured in BBC Four's series Opera Italia, in which he traces the history of Italian opera. In the first installation of the series he covers works from classical composers Monteverdi, Handel, Mozart and Rossini, with footage from Royal Opera House productions such as Le Nozze Di Figaro and The Barber of Seville. Such operas from Italy and across Europe have shaped the image of opera in public minds, but the Royal Opera House and other established venues are also willing to innovate in new, modern themed productions. The more contemporary operas are proving an effective way to attract new audiences who have previously been of the thinking that opera is too high-brow and only for the enjoyment of the upper classes.

To maintain a balance in pleasing the traditionalists and innovating in new opera productions is not an easy task, but the variety of productions in the new season should whet the appetites of both. With experts such as Pappano and Padmore developing the programme, there will surely be more interesting productions appearing on the London stage in the future.

The author is working for a well established London Opera and ballet venue whose repertory includes Le Nozze di Figaro and the ever popular opera comique Carmen.