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Description
At once discursive and practical, this book illuminates the traditional, musical and production aspects of directing opera, from score preparation to production week, to demystify an art form that can sometimes terrify even the most ambitious of directors.
Topics covered include:
* Opera's tradition and performance history
* How to analyse a musical score
* What if you don't read music?
* Director's relationship with conductors, répétiteurs and singers
* Directing in languages other than your native tongue
* Rehearsal and production processes unique to opera
* Vocal training with singers
* Design considerations and acoustic music
* Directing new work
The coverage in this book enables directors to develop a toolkit, build a vocabulary, grow confidence working within the art form and, ultimately, enrich the opera industry as well as their own practice. It does this through using real-world examples, including a case study of Puccini's La bohème; contributions from other opera directors working internationally; as well as insights from dramaturgs, conductors, répétiteurs and singers.
Simultaneously, the book sets out issues facing opera today and how to navigate and improve those, including its dearth of diverse voices, historical racism and the nature of the tradition, as well as the challenge of how to develop new audiences.
While opera presents a bewildering number of challenges to an uninitiated director, with the inside knowledge and understanding of the industry found within this book, directors will unearth a treasure trove of opportunities for drama, music and large-scale collaborative performance.
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Opera as an art form, opera directing and why it needs you!
How to use this book
Chapter 1: The major components of opera
A potted history of opera
What is opera?
Timelines
Different styles
Music
Libretto (text)
Recitative
Arias
Durchkomponiert (through-composed opera)
Choruses
Relationship between music and drama
Chapter 2: Opera in the Modern World
Contending with opera's historical baggage in a contemporary context
Tradition vs innovation
Race and gender representation in problematic historical works
Opera in the digital sphere
New works
Remit of opera companies and funding models
Chapter 3: Working with Singers
Working with actors vs working with singers
Acoustic vocal production
Different voice types
Demands of different styles
Vocal technique and vocal safety
Training that singers do (and don't) receive:
o Musical training
o Vocal training
o Language training
o Stagecraft (
Working with young singers
Movement
Working with choruses
Pychology and physiology of singing
o Communicating and empathising with singers
o Technical vocal requirements and collaboration with the musical director
o Health
o Marking in rehearsals
o Common challenges for singers and directors
Chapter 4: Working with Music
Music vs. drama
Music and your direction
Text vs. musical performance
Studying the music
How to listen closely
Breaking a score down into units (including La bohème case study)
Chapter 5: Non-English Languages
Text analysis with librettos and translations
Putting this into your score
Sounds that different languages make and how to use them dramatically:
o Italian
o German
o French
o English
Other major languages in opera (Russian, Czech, Spanish, Latin)
Chapter 6: Roles and Relationships
What does everyone do?
Understanding your collaborators
Requirements of other professionals in the rehearsal room
What is your domain, and what is the domain of someone else?
Repetiteurs (your new best friend and resource)
Conductors and Music Directors: Navigating shared leadership in the rehearsal room
Singers
Assistant Directors
Orchestral Musicians
Other production crew
... including interviews with and contributions from various professionals across these roles
Chapter 7: Rehearsal Room – Production Week – Performances
Singer-friendly design and staging
Acoustic set design
Costume considerations for singing (and breathing)
Timelines for productions:
o Rehearsal period
o Production week
Guiding the development of new works with writers and composers
Conclusion
Glossary
Bibliography
Index
Product details
| Published | 25 Jun 2026 |
|---|---|
| Format | Ebook (Epub & Mobi) |
| Edition | 1st |
| Pages | 240 |
| ISBN | 9781350460928 |
| Imprint | Methuen Drama |
| Illustrations | 12 b&w |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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