Roberto Alagna is regularly described as one of the greatest opera singers of our time. He frequently performs in the biggest opera houses around the world – from The Met to Covent Garden – and his repertoire includes all of the most important tenor roles, including Alfredo in La Traviata, Don José in Carmen, Des Grieux in Manon Lescaut and Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly. However, one of the more infamous incidents in his career was the night he stormed off the stage mid-aria during a performance of Aida at La Scala in 2006, in response to aggressive heckling from a small group of audience members, forcing his understudy to complete the show. So it might be natural to assume he is a difficult personality with a somewhat ‘operatic’ ego. But this couldn’t be further from the truth.

Talking over the phone from New York City where he is in midst of performing three huge roles back-to-back at The Metropolitan Opera, Alagna is warm, gentle and extraordinarily humble, and he goes to great pains to express gratitude for his audiences and his three decades in the profession. “I feel very lucky for my career and it has...