He has directed over ten world premières, including three by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies for whom he wrote the librettos of The Doctor of Myddfai, Mr Emmet Takes a Walk and Kommilitonen!

In April 2011 he was named head of the Welsh National Opera with his appointment as chief executive and artistic director to begin in September 2011.

[6] He has worked as a librettist for Sir Peter Maxwell Davies on The Doctor of Myddfai, Mr Emmet Takes a Walk and Kommilitonen!, and has translated opera librettos into English from Russian, Czech, German, and Italian.

[8] To great critical acclaim he directed Zandonai's Francesca da Rimini at La Scala Opera House, Milan in 2018.

Later that year at Strasbourg he directed Kurt Weill and Arnold Schoenberg in Das Mahagonny Songspiel, Pierrot Lunaire and Die 7 Todsunden.