Opera director Katie Mitchell takes final bow, citing persistent industry misogyny

27 October 2025, 12:33

Katie Mitchell has retired as an opera director, saying she has never had a working process free from misogyny. Picture: Getty

By Hazel Davis

Acclaimed director says she’s never had a working process free of sexism.

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Renowned director Katie Mitchell has announced her retirement from opera, citing persistent industry misogyny and saying it would take a system revolution to bring her back.

Speaking to Rebecca Franks in an interview for The Times, Mitchell said, “Across the 30 or so operas I have directed, I have never had a working process free of sexism.”

Mitchell said she has experienced sexism on a “mild” level, such as being asked daily, “Are you a happy girl now?” as well as more extreme cases, such as being screamed at and even having furniture thrown at her.

Mitchell announced she was bringing her work in opera to a close as she prepares for her final production, Janáček’s The Makropulos Case, at the Royal Opera House this November.

Throughout her career, Mitchell has worked hard at reshaping the classical canon by reimagining the stories of female heroines and challenging the accepted narrative arc for operatic heroines.

As an opera director, Katie Mitchell is known for reimagining the stories of female heroines. Picture: Getty

Her acclaimed productions have included presenting Handel’s Theodora as a fundamentalist freedom fighter, adding a miscarriage to Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor and highlighting fertility issues in Strauss’ Die Frau ohne Schatten.

Mitchell said there was a widespread issue with a mismatch between “toxic content and beautiful music” within the industry. “Most librettos of the 35 to 37 canonical pieces would never be staged as plays. If they were, it would be riotous.”

She also talked about the lack of robust systems to protect artists, warning that, “Most opera houses in the UK and across Europe do not have fully functioning systems for managing sexism and because of this I can feel unsafe in the workplace.”

However, Mitchell did praise the Royal Opera House as “one of the companies that has successfully changed its working practices” calling out her historic collaboration with intimacy coordinator Ita O’Brien.

Mitchell said she was going to do more teaching, write books and focus on mentoring the younger generation.