It is essential to do everything possible to attract young people to opera so they can see that it is not some antiquated art form but a repository of the most glorious music and drama that man has created.

I don't rehearse films as much as opera or theatre. When I began directing films I thought a long rehearsal was a good idea. Experience showed me that the best performance was often left in a rehearsal room.

Directing an opera is similar to directing a play. The singing must not get in the way of the drama.

Everyone has seen photographs of Mexicans wearing those big sombreros. When you come to Mexico, the astonishing thing is, nobody wears these hats at all.

Perhaps the most difficult thing is shooting scenes set 6,000 feet up in the mountains of Mexico.

With Cold Sassy Tree having its first production, I saw no necessity to do anything other than produce it with the correct setting.

When the music and the characters are flawlessly synchronized, the opera develops an emotional force that movies and plays cannot match.