Since 1876, Bayreuth has been synonymous with Richard Wagner, whose epic “Ring” cycle premiered there that year in his purpose-built Festspielhaus on the Green Hill on the outskirts of town. But what of the Margravial Opera House of Wilhelmine of Bayreuth, which opened in the center of town in a blaze of Baroque glory 13 decades before? For over a century, it languished in dusty disuse. But in 2012, UNESCO listed Wilhelmine’s white elephant on the registry of World Heritage sites. A renovation campaign ensued, leading to a reopening, six years later, of “the only entirely preserved example of its type where an audience of 500 can experience Baroque court opera culture and acoustics authentically.” September 2020 saw the launch of the International Festival of Opera Seria Bayreuth Baroque in the teeth of the pandemic. This year’s edition—at the opera house and other venues—sees full productions of Monteverdi’s Orfeo and Handel’s Flavio (the latter directed by the festival director and sensational countertenor Max Emanuel Cencic, who also appears in a supporting role), plus recitals by a who’s who of early music luminaries. —Matthew Gurewitsch