lyndebourne has a proud association with the operas of Benjamin Britten, yet this highly-acclaimed production from 2010 was their first staging of his all-male opera Billy Budd. Set on a British man-o-war ship, with a libretto co-written by EM Forster, the opera is based on the battle between good and evil. Michael Grandage, artistic director of the Donmar Warehouse, chose this work to make his long-awaited operatic debut. Sir Mark Elder returned to conduct, marking the 100th opera production in his illustrious career.