The set and costumes (Raimund Bauer and Andrea Schmidt-Futterer) are a feast for the eye. There is an enormous studded wall with an entrance and a balcony; in the wall, towering over the balcony, is a circular space in which the princess (and, later, her father Altoum) first appears. The costumes include a fearsome black creation for Turandot, festooned with layers of material resembling seaweed, and striped pantaloons for the masks Ping, Pang and Pong. Then there is Duane Schuler’s lighting, which turns the set blood-red at appropriate moments. ...

On her first, silent appearance, Turandot is so plastered in red and white make-up that it’s hard to see why Calaf is bowled over. Never mind: Nina Stemme is quite wonderful once she starts to sing. Clutching her red staff, she delivers ‘In questa reggia’ with burnished tone, culminating in a gleaming top C when Calaf joins her in the threefold ‘Gli enigmi sono tre’.  Richard Lawrence