Is this likely? It seems to me they would 'steal' audiences from Covent Garden -
Exactamundo. But since the ROH sell-out consistently "at home base", surely this would not be a problem?
I'm guessing wildly here, but I presume that the Manchester operation would involve a (new) theatre with permanent FOH and stage-staff, but opera/ballet productions coming up from London in rotation whilst other shows are on the Covent Garden stage? A second orchestra would be needed, but this half-exists
de facto anyhow (although no-one will ever actually admit that it's a pit-ful of deps for the ballet). I can't believe it would be hard to recruit players of the necessary calibre in the UK.
We have some experience of this here - the Bolshoi have two stages (they're only 0.5km apart, but the "handling" of the gear and costumes would occupy the same amount of time) and rotate shows between the two. There are two orchestras, although the proximity of the the two theatres enables some principal-rotating.
The idea that Britain's "centre of excellence" (to use the old Glory-Of-The-Garden terminology) is sitting there in WC2 with productions
queuing to get onto its sell-out stage... whilst the regions get slim pickings of once-in-a-blue-moon tours is clearly potty.
Opera North will be the losers by this, though, clearly - Manchester's within "night out" striking distance of their performance-bases. I'd like to hope that such a highly populated and affluent area could support both? I think it could, but it might back O.N. into a corner on repertoire.
