Among his recent roles are Emile de Becque in the Lincoln Center revival of "South Pacific" that recently toured Australia (a role that has been played by opera singers), and Stanley Kowalski in the coming modern-opera production of "A Streetcar Named Desire" at Chicago's Lyric Opera and New York's Carnegie Hall in March.

WSJ: Opera Singer Builds Up Stamina for 'Carmen'

The countries involved in the opera are Botswana, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, India, Australia and Scotland.

BBC: Alexander McCall Smith

In her role in Australia, Ms Isherwood has overseen running 2, 500 performances at the Sydney Opera House, which operates from five venues.

BBC: Sydney arts boss heads for Wales