May 2024 Volume 76 No. 5 Editor John Allison Deputy Editors Erica Jeal Henrietta Bredin US Editor Rebecca Paller Commercial Director Megan Jackson Editorial Board Hugh Canning Rupert Christiansen Andrew Clark Andrew Clements Richard Fairman George Hall Fiona Maddocks Roger Parker Editorial Offices Rivermead, 6 Lower Teddington Road, Hampton Wick KT1 4ER Tel: +44 (0)20 8563 8893 editor@opera.co.uk www.opera.co.uk with operamagazine @operamagazine @opera_magazine Subscriptions and customer services Esco, Trinity House, Sculpins Lane, Wethersfield, Braintree CM7 4AY Tel: +44 (0)1371 851804 opera@escosubs.co.uk Members of the Metropolitan Opera Guild Tel: +1 212 362 0068 metropolitanopera@metopera.org Digital edition Exact Editions support@exacteditions.com www.exacteditions.com/opera Advertising Russell Bass, Cabbells Ltd Tel: +44 (0)20 3603 7937 russell@cabbells.uk Front cover Katharina Margiera, Margarita Polonskaya, Isabel Signoret and Brian Mulligan in ‘Das Rheingold’ at the Opéra de Paris (see pp. 728-31; photo: Herwig Prammer) Founded in 1950 by the Earl of Harewood Past Editors Harold Rosenthal and Rodney Milnes 631 Not yet lost By the Editor 632 Spotlight 633 We hear that … 633 Newsdesk 636 Festivals directory 643 Festivals spotlight 649 Bass line Mika Kares talks to Stephen J. Mudge 655 Among friends Colin Matthews and William Boyd in conversation with Alexandra Coghlan 658 Readers’ letters 660 Czech opera at home Clive Paget on Smetana’s Litomyšl 665 Local and global Michael Clive takes the measure of the innovative Opera Theatre of Saint Louis 673 Everyone has a voice Paola Prestini talks to Rebecca Paller about her new opera 682 The art of exile John Allison on Martinů and a circle of painters 687 Metropolitan Opera broadcasts 693 Opera in the USA 7 15 Opera around the world 74 9 Opera in the UK 763 Opera on CD 771 Obituary 772 Season announcements 773 Opera calendar 784 Stage door: Daniela Candillari Rebecca Paller Opera, May 2025 625