Not the Royal Opera House? Not a good idea

The Covent Garden building that has staged opera and ballet for the past three centuries has renamed itself The Royal Ballet and Opera.

Such rebrandings are not undertaken lightly.

They usually reflect an internal decision that the company is being held back by an outworn image, that part of its activity is failing to excite the public imagination.

In the case of the ROH it reflects an everlasting war for primacy between ballet and opera. Ballet has been winning over the past couple of seasons in terms of originality and innovation. Opera lovers will regard the renaming, rightly, as a defeat for their artform.

Alex Beard, Chief Executive of the Royal Ballet and Opera, said: ‘Today we announce a Season of extraordinary breadth and ambition – to audiences old and new, in schools and cinemas across the UK, and through streaming and digital media, right across the world. Bringing ballet into our name is long overdue – The Royal Ballet and The Royal Opera have performed under the same roof since 1946 – and both companies now enjoy the prominence that they rightfully deserve. The whole of the Royal Ballet and Opera is far more than the sum of our parts. We may perform at the Royal Opera House, but three quarters of what we do is experienced by people outside this building and, as we mark 40 years of our Learning programme, the impact and influence of the Royal Ballet and Opera can be felt in every corner of the country.’

That statement is mostly wishful thinking. However, Beard is right that dance has more public traction in the UK than opera, and that the ballet company is hitting its straps better than the singing side. The question is, how will opera respond to the institutional donwgrade? Sulkily, no doubt. This is a serious blow that will have lasting consequences. Opera at Covent Garden is now second best.