Controversial ENO Director Speaks

John Berry gives his first interview since being named to the top artistic job at the troubled English National Opera. “I think you can only do this job in a major house,” he says, “if the artists trust you and are willing to go on a journey with you, and they feel you are willing to go on a journey with them. I’ve worked with 70 or 80 of the world’s leading directors. My life has really been as a producer; that’s what I do. It’s all been about trying to get the best out of people and working in a collaborative way.”