The Royal Opera House is delighted to announce its biggest Cinema Season ever. Over 2022/23, an astonishing 13 productions from The Royal Ballet and The Royal Opera will be broadcast to more than 1,300 cinemas around the world, bringing the joy of live performance to audiences from the UK all the way to New Zealand.
The Cinema Season opens in September with Puccini’s heart-rending opera Madama Butterfly. The following month, cinema goers can join The Royal Ballet for the opening night of Kenneth MacMillan’s Mayerling; experience Robert Carsen’s brand-new production of Aida, conducted by Antonio Pappano; and watch La bohème, sung by an outstanding cast that includes Juan Diego Flórez and Danielle de Niese. The opening night of The Royal Ballet: A Diamond Celebration – including George Balanchine’s Diamonds, the Company’s first performance of For Four by Artistic Associate Christopher Wheeldon, and three world premieres – will be relayed live in November; and in December, The Nutcracker will reach audiences across the globe, offering sweeping snowscapes, magical stagecraft and a showstopping series of dances performed in the dream-like Kingdom of Sweets.
The new year kicks off with screenings of Like Water for Chocolate – a full-length ballet by Christopher Wheeldon that receives its premiere this current Season, and is inspired by Laura Esquivel’s captivating Mexican novel of the same name. This will be followed by live broadcasts of The Barber of Seville, Turandot and The Royal Ballet’s new production of Frederick Ashton’s Cinderella, redesigned by a world-class creative team that includes set designer Tom Pye, Oscar award-winning costume designer Alexandra Byrne, lighting designer David Finn, video designer Finn Ross and magic consultant Chris Fisher. In April and May, audiences can enjoy Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro and a live relay of The Royal Ballet’s The Sleeping Beauty; and in June, the Cinema Season will close with Il trovatore – a brand new production that will bring Olivier Award-winning director Adele Thomas back to Covent Garden following the success of Bajazet (2022) and Berenice (2019).
Our cinema programme has brought stunning productions to audiences across the globe since 2008. Broadcasts offer audiences the best seat in the house for each performance, and include exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, interviews and insights into the rehearsal process.
This series of broadcasts joins an astonishing array of performances, events and activities across our 2022/23 Season. Over 40 productions, performed by an incredible roster of international stars and created in collaboration with global companies, will be performed on our stages. More than 200 events and activities will take place in our iconic Covent Garden home, and outreach programmes will reach over 27,000 children across the UK. Join us here in London, or experience our work wherever you are
