Edith Nesbit's The Railway Children is a story that should need little introduction. The delightful, yet emotional, children's story follows youngsters Roberta, Peter and Phyllis following the arrest of their father. Mark Anthony Turnage and librettist Rachel Hewer adapt the tale into an exciting new opera. I must admit, I have no particular fondness for the instrumental compositions I heard previously from Turnage. But clearly he has a gift for opera (this being the composer behind the Olivier award-winning Festen). The Railway Children features a small ensemble and is semi-staged, but punches well above its weight. The video design is broadly insignificant, but clearly picks up the slack where a more ambitious set design would have otherwise immersed and provided greater understanding. A slight oversight in my opinion: no surtitles. Even with the quality projection of vocalists I cannot quite make out all the words from near the back of the Qu...