1x1 - Star Struck

January 16, 1996

As the curtain rises, there's a crisis at the box office and impending disaster on stage as diva Denyce Graves loses her voice. Visits to a Harley Street specialist fail to remedy the problem, leaving just hours to locate a replacement for the leading role in Carmen.

1x2 - Horse Trading

January 23, 1996

It's a stressful time for almost everyone concerned as two productions—an opera and a ballet—go into rehearsals and over budget. Almost everything that can go wrong duly does so.

1x3 - Foot Fault

January 30, 1996

Not all the staff are happy with the radical changes in the Opera House work schedules planned to be implemented. Meanwhile, the Royal Ballet is off to Washington.

1x4 - High Hopes

February 6, 1996

A silent war waged behind the famous Crush Bar and further confrontation between management and unions over rates of pay feature in tonight's behind-the-scenes developments at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden.

1x5 - Settling Scores

February 13, 1996

The new Director at the Royal Opera has the task of finding the right balance between financial and aesthetic considerations.

1x6 - Winning Ticket

February 20, 1996

The main problem for the Royal Opera House is an ever-present one: to secure the hundreds of millions of pounds needed to keep the opera and ballet companies performing in London while the Covent Garden building is refurbished. But plenty of people are ready to pay £1,750 to join the Princess of Wales in the audience for the Winter Gala.

Jancis Robinson

Narrator