Leigh Melrose

In the 2026-27 season, Melrose returns to English National Opera for a new production directed by Annilese Miskimmon of Kaija Saariaho’s Adriana Mater as Tsargo. He stars in a new production of John Adams’ Dr Atomic as Robert Oppenheimer, directed by Vanessa Beecroft and conducted by Elim Chan and also returns to Opéra national de Paris for the world premiere of Hèctor Parra’s Miroir de nos peines directed by Mariame Clément and conducted by Ingo Metzmacher.

Last season, Melrose began with a double appearance as Clov in Kurtág’s Fin de Partie at the Enescu Festival and the Norwegian National Opera before he made his house debut at Grand Théâtre de Genève as Golaud Pelléas et Mélisande. He joined the Berliner Philharmoniker and Kirill Petrenko as Alberich Das Rheingold at the Salzburg Easter Festival. Melrose also collaborated again with acclaimed director, Calixto Bieito in two projects – Hèctor Parra’s Orgia with Ensemble intercontemporin and Shostakovich’s Symphony No.14 at Teatro Arriaga. Other engagements included the baritone soloist in Lili Boulanger’s Faust et Hélène; Nekrotzar Le grand Macabre at the Helsinki Festival; and Britten’s War Requiem at Southwark Cathedral with the Outcry Ensemble.

Recent successes include Balstrode (Dutch National Opera) and Ned Keene Peter Grimes (Teatro alla Scala and Staatsoper Hamburg); Don Pizarro Fidelio (Staatsoper Hamburg); Eurymaque in Fauré’s Pénélope (Bayerische Staatsoper); Beckmesser Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (Teatro Real); Šiškov From the House of the Dead (Ruhrtriennale); Das grosse Feuer by Beat Furrer (Opernhaus Zürich); Prospero in Thomas Adès’ The Tempest(Teatro alla Scala);  Clov in György Kurtág’s Fin de Partie (Teatro alla Scala, Dutch National Opera, Opéra national de Paris); Enescu’s Œdipe(Komische Oper Berlin); Nekrotzar Le Grand Macabre (Opernhaus Zürich); Ruprecht The Fiery Angel (Opernhaus Zürich); Alberich Das Rheingold(Staatsoper Stuttgart, English National Opera and Ruhrtriennale); Kajin in Bieito’s new production of Rudi Stephan’s Die ersten Menschen (Dutch National Opera); and the world premiere of Héctor Parra’s Orgia, after Pier Paolo Pasolini’s play in a project imagined by Calixto Bieito at the Teatro Arriaga. Closely associated with Teatro Real, Madrid his many triumphs there include The Traveller Death in Venice; Friedrich Das Liebesverbot; Ruprecht The Fiery Angel and Richard Nixon Nixon in China for which he was awarded one of the Artistic Prizes at the 3rd Teatro Real Awards in recognition for his extraordinary contribution to several productions at the Teatro Real.

One of the most sought-after interpreters of contemporary music, Leigh Melrose has given many world premieres, including Louis Andriessen’s exhilarating Theatre of the World at Dutch National Opera and with the Los Angeles Philharmonic; Dai Fujikura’s Solaris – a co-production between Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Opéra de Lille and Opéra de Lausanne; Johannes Kalitzke’s Die Besessenen at Theater an der Wien; Elliot Carter’s On Conversing with Paradise at the Aldeburgh Festival under Oliver Knussen (also nominated for a Gramophone Award for ‘Best Contemporary Album’); Luca Francesconi’s Quartett at Royal Ballet & Opera; and Evan in James MacMillan’s The Sacrifice at Welsh National Opera. Other performances include his debut at the Teatro Maggio Musicale Festival in Florence singing Rihm’s Der maler träumt; the title role in Birtwistle’s Gawain with BBC Symphony Orchestra; Matthias Pintscher’s Songs from Solomon’s Garden with the Ensemble Intercontemporain in Paris conducted by the composer; Rambo in the Channel 4 television film of John Adams’ The Death of Klinghoffer; Michael Collins in Jonathan Dove’s TV opera Man on the Moon for Channel 4; Punch in Birtwistle’s Punch and Judy in Porto; Xenakis’ Ais with the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the BBC Proms and Berlin Festival; Peter Maxwell Davies’ The Martyrdom of St Magnus at the composer’s St Magnus Festival in Orkney, Edinburgh, and Inverness; Maxwell-Davies’ Eight Songs for a Mad King with the Orquesta de Cadaqués in Madrid, with the London Sinfonietta at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, with BIT20 in Bergen and with the Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra; Michael Finnissy’s Maldon with the London Sinfonietta at the Queen Elizabeth Hall and the world premiere of Martin Suckling’s Candlebird, also with the London Sinfonietta under Nicholas Collon.