A behind-the-scenes tour of the magnificent Royal Opera House in London, thirty minutes before curtain up, led by Figaro the cat. It's opening night of The Nutcracker, and the performers at the Royal Opera House in London are busy getting ready to step out onto the stage. Meanwhile, Figaro - the opera house's resident cat - is poised to take readers on a behind-the-scenes tour to meet the many people working to make tonight's performance a resounding success. This backstage tour of the Royal Opera House takes readers from department to department to discover what's involved in putting on a performance such as The Nutcracker. Featuring examples from key works of opera and ballet, highlights of the tour include trying on the Mad Hatter's wig from Alice in Wonderland; practising for a fighting scene from Romeo and Juliet; putting the finishing touches on the Sugar Plum Fairy's tutu; learning to 'play dead'; and creating explosions on stage. Including an introduction to a classical orchestra, key ballet terms and basic stage directions, the book encourages readers to explore the many ways they can get involved.

The Royal Ballet perform Marius Petipa's version of the ballet by Adolphe Adam, inspired by a poem by Heinrich Heine. Conducted by Boris Gruzin, Natalia Osipova plays the title role with Carlos Acosta as Count Albrecht. When young peasant girl Giselle discovers that her lover, Albrecht, is actually a nobleman in disguise who is due to be married, she dies from despair. But when Albrecht's life is threatened by the evil Wilis clan, Giselle's spirit returns to save him.

The Royal Opera House give a live performance of Hector Berlioz's opera based on the poem, 'Aeneid', by Virgil. The story chronicles the collapse of Troy and the love affair between Enée (Bryan Hymel), a Trojan who eventually becomes a Roman ancestor, and Didon, Queen of Carthage (Eva-Maria Westbroek). The prophetess, Casssandre, is portrayed by Anna Caterina Antonacci and her betrothed prince, Chorèbe, by Fabio Maria Capitanucci. Antonio Pappano conducts the Royal Opera House Orchestra and Chorus.

Two gala concerts performed at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London. The 1993 Winter Gala saw soprano Kiri Te Kanawa take to the stage in a performance of 'Vocalise' by Rachmaninov as well as ballerina Darcey Bussell who danced to scenes from Tchaikovsky's 'The Nutcracker' and 'Sleeping Beauty'. The 1996 Gala Concert invited Plácido Domingo who treated the audience to a rendition of 'Gold und Silber' by Franz Lehár and was then joined on stage by Veronica Villarroel for the 'Cherry Duet' from Pietro Mascagni's 'L'amico Fritz'.

Boris Gruzin conducts the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House in this production of Adolphe Adam's classic ballet about a peasant girl whose betrayal by her aristocratic lover causes her to go mad before dying and returning as a ghost. Alina Cojocaru stars in the title role, while Johan Kobborg plays Count Albrecht.

Martin Yates conducts the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House in this live performance by the Royal Ballet. Principal Guest Artist Carlos Acosta provides an updated version of Marius Petipa's original choreography.

Richard Bonynge conducts the Royal Opera House Orchestra and Chorus in this 1980 production of Donizetti's dark opera based on the novel by Victor Hugo.

"Captures the resilience of the company." – The i newspaper In March 2020, Liam Scarlett's production of Swan Lake opened at the Royal Opera House, beginning its anticipated 3-month run. That same month, the UK government ordered theatres and arts centres across the country to close immediately as the COVID-19 pandemic starting its fast and destructive spread around the world. At the Royal Opera House, The Royal Ballet Company were furloughed and training programmes quickly set up virtually. Audiences who previously crowded into the venue were confined to their homes, with many switching their engagement to streamed digital performances live from the venue. This changed the audience experience significantly - not only because of the nature of the performance dramatically, but because it brought in new international audiences almost overnight. This book of photographs captures a period unlike any other, a journey that starts with the Company in "normal" times and develops into plans being made for a gradual in-person return to the Royal Opera House under strict COVID safety measures, such as mask-wearing, extensive COVID testing and artists working in "bubbles". Through a selection of striking photographs, the book showcases the remarkable resilience of The Royal Ballet throughout this year, a resilience that's shared by so many arts organisations affected equally dramatically by the pandemic. This Season in Pictures volume contains photographs of classic Royal Ballet productions, including Swan Lake, Coppélia and The Nutcracker, dancers engaged in community projects, socially distanced performances on The Royal Ballet stage, performances with totally empty auditoria and dancers in rehearsal wearing face masks.

Antonio Pappano conducts the Royal Opera House Orchestra in this production of Umberto Giordano's opera set during the French Revolution. Jonas Kaufmann portrays the eponymous poet with the rest of the cast including Eva-Maria Westbroek, Zeljko Lucic, Denyce Graves and Elena Zilio.

Collection of three of Mozart's operas performed at the Royal Opera House. Charles Mackerras conducts a 2008 production of 'Don Giovanni' starring Simon Keenlyside as the eponymous character. Keenlyside also features in 'Die Zauberflöte' (2003), alongside Dorothea Röschmann and Will Hartmann with Colin Davis conducting. Finally, the cast of 'Le Nozze di Figaro' (2006) includes Erwin Schrott, Miah Persson and Gerald Finley with Antonio Pappano as conducter. The Royal Opera House Orchestra and Chorus perform each of Mozart's scores.

Nicola Luisotti conducts the Royal Opera Orchestra and Chorus in a live performance of Mozart's work. Starring Mariusz Kwiecien as the eponymous philanderer, the cast also includes Alex Esposito, Malin Byström, Véronique Gens and Antonio Poli.

Francesca Zambello's vibrant production of Bizet's opera recorded live at London's Royal Opera House in June 2011. Christine Rice leads an all-star cast including Bryan Hymel, Dawid Kimberg, Maija Kovalevska and Nicolas Courjal, with conductor Constantinos Carydis making his Covent Garden debut.

Edward Watson takes the lead role in Kenneth MacMillan's production of Mayerling, filmed at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, in 2009. The Orchestra of the Royal Opera House is conducted by Barry Wordsworth.

Marianela Nunez and Thiago Soares head the cast in this acclaimed production for the Royal Ballet from March 2009. Russian conductor Valeriy Ovsyanikov leads the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, while Anthony Dowell directs.