MY VERSION OF EVENTS....

As a man, it is wise to tread carefully when involved in debates about gender equality, especially when you are possibly considered part of the problem in the first place. I recently read a piece by Sophie Gilpin ( https://auditionoracle.com/we_need_to_talk_about_women/ ) of Head First Productions in which she charts the number of women heading up small-scale opera companies and then compares it to a list of larger scale opera companies. The difference is stark and only the trenchantly misogynistic or very stupid would dispute the significance of the obvious lack of women at the top of our mid to large scale opera companies. Is it entirely coincidental? As so often happens, reading pieces like Sophie's gives one pause for thought and encourages you to look more closely at your organisation to see how you measure up in the context of the argument. Her piece was about the people leading companies and naturally, since she rightly points out that James and I are both men, there can be...