Scottish Opera’s present and upcoming programme brings together two masterpieces
Scottish Opera’s present and upcoming programme brings together two masterpieces from opposite ends of the operatic spectrum.
Richard Wagner’s vast romantic tragedy Tristan und Isolde, opens at Glasgow’s Theatre Royal on 7th March. Then Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s sparkling comedy The Marriage of Figaro, plays the theatre in May. Together, these classics demonstrate the extraordinary emotional range of opera, moving from the depths of obsessive passion to the light-footed wit of social satire.
Wagner’s Tristan and Isolde is amongst the most influential works in the history of opera. It follows the doomed love between the Cornish knight Tristan and the Irish princess Isolde, whose dual fate is sealed after they drink a love potion that binds them in an overwhelming and ultimately destructive passion. Scottish Opera have presented it with concert staging, placing the emphasis on the music and psychological intensity of Wagner’s monumental score. It was conducted by Scottish Opera’s music director Stuart Stratford and directed by Justin Way. Welsh tenor Gwyn Hughes Jones sang the role of Tristan, with soprano Katherine Broderick as Isolde. They were joined by Khatuna Mikaberidze as Brangäne, Hansung Yoo as Kurwenal, and Richard Wiegold as King Marke, with Mark Le Brocq appearing as Melot.
The Marriage of Figaro
If Wagner’s opera immerses audiences in philosophical tragedy, Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro offers an exuberant comic counterpoint, and it’s one I’m particularly looking forward to – I would urge everyone who can to go and see it. Touring from May to June across venues in Scotland, the production revives Sir Thomas Allen’s much-loved staging of Mozart’s classic comedy of class and desire.
Set over the course of a single chaotic day in Count Almaviva’s household, the opera follows Figaro and his fiancée Susanna as they attempt to thwart the Count’s attempts to seduce her. Packed with disguises, misunderstandings and clever reversals, the opera is both a joyous comedy and a subtle critique of social hierarchy on the eve of revolution.
Edward Jowle sings Figaro with Ava Dodd as Susanna, while Ian Rucker makes his company debut as Count Almaviva and Alexandra Lowe appears as the Countess. The role of Cherubino is shared by Simone McIntosh and Chloe Harris. The production is conducted by Dane Lam (with some performances led by Susannah Wapshott) and sung in English with English supertitles.
Touring
The Marriage of Figaro will tour Scotland in spring and early summer 2026. It opens at the Theatre Royal Glasgow with performances on 9, 13, 15, 20 and 23 May at 7.15pm, alongside matinees on 17 May and an access performance on 22 May at 3pm. The production will then move to the Festival Theatre Edinburgh, where it will run from 29 May to 6 June, with evening performances on 29 May and 2, 4 and 6 June at 7.15pm, plus matinees on 31 May and an access performance on 5 June at 3pm. From there the tour will continue north to His Majesty’s Theatre in Aberdeen for two evening performances on 11 and 13 June, before concluding at Eden Court in Inverness with final shows on 18 and 20 June, both beginning at 7.15pm.
By presenting these two iconic works in the same season, Scottish Opera has given their audiences a vivid journey through the extremes of operatic storytelling, from Wagner’s overwhelming vision of love beyond death to Mozart’s irrepressible celebration of wit, humanity and forgiveness.
