Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett, the musician and animator who create Gorillaz's animated rock videos, will collaborate with director Chen Shi-Zheng on Money Journey to the West, based on the 16th-century Chinese novel Xi You Ji ("Journey to the West") by Wu Cheng'en. The production comes to Berlin late July 2007 after premiering at the Manchester International Festival.

Manon, a co-production with Los Angeles Opera, will star soprano Anna Netrebko and tenor Rolando Villaz‹n as Manon and Des Grieux; choreographer Vincent Paterson will direct. The Monteverdi double bill will be staged by Luk Perceval and conducted by Ren_ Jacobs.

Revivals include Parsifal with Ren_ Pape and Plšcido Domingo; Pape also sings Phillip II in Don Carlo and the title role of Boris Godunov . Waltrand Meier appears as Isolde and Aida. As part of the company's chamber music series, Barenboim appears with both Villaz‹n and Magdelena Kozenš.