Robert Carsen

Robert Carsen O.C. (born 23 June 1954) is a Canadian opera director. He was born in Toronto and is the son of philanthropist Walter Carsen.

Early steps towards directing From an early age "I became obsessed with the theatre" Carsen states and he wanted to become an actor. At Upper Canada College he tells that "was in all the plays and musicals I could get into. In those days, because it was a boys’ school, the boys played both male and female roles. So I played Katisha in The Mikado, and Archibald Grosvenor when we did Patience." Studying theatre at York University in Toronto followed, but by the time he was 20, he abandoned his theatre studies and moved to England to continue studying acting.

Career beginnings When Carsen was 25 Canadian Opera Company (COC) director Lotfi Mansouri invited him to work as assistant director on Tristan und Isolde, and this was followed directing two operas at the Guelph Spring Festival in Ontario, these being Peter Maxwell Davies' The Lighthouse and Benjamin Britten’s The Prodigal Son. the Canadian Opera Company, The Netherlands Opera, and New York's Metropolitan Opera. The Met's December 2013 staging received acclaim.

Honours In 1996, Carsen received the title of Knight of the Legion of Honour. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2006.