There are more Nutcrackers than you can shake a sugar plum at, but the festive TV schedules are more parsimonious with their operatic offerings this season.
The one highlight is the Royal Opera House's recent all-star Tosca (Kaufmann, Terfel, Gheorghiu) which airs tomorrow, 24 December, on BBC2 at 2.35pm.
Preceding it at 1.35pm is a DVD extra-style documentary. Pappano's Essential Tosca isn't just a ponce around the historical locations, though inevitably there's quite a bit of that sort of thing. There's also rehearsal footage (Angela is surprisingly 100x more compelling in this than the real thing), a detailed look at how the bell sounds are produced, and an interview with the legendary Ennio Morricone. The programme also marks the first and I confidently predict only time a Music Director of the Royal Opera House says 'masturbatory' on daytime TV
The ROH website has a clip of the documentary's start (strangely, they miss a trick by not plugging the opera itself). The BBC have more clips - none of them featuring Jonas Kaufmann, in case you're wondering. In total you can watch nearly half the show online.
Both programmes will be on the iPlayer later.
