If you seek an introduction to opera, people often suggest Mozart’s last one, “Die Zauberflöte” (“The Magic Flute,” 1791).

One of the busiest stage directors in Europe is fully arriving, at last, with “The Threepenny Opera” this spring.

Provoking boos 25 years ago for radical stagings saturated with sex and violence, Calixto Bieito at age 61 has transformed ...