English Touring Opera was performing three operas within striking distance of Oxford this week: Puccini's Tosca and Janacek's Jenufa in a five-day run at the Everyman, Cheltenham, and Leoncavallo's Pagliacci (in association with Pegasus Opera Company) for one night only, on Tuesday, at the Corn Exchange, Newbury.

How well served we are by the "people's opera house on wheels", as the company styles itself, was evident from the Tosca I saw on its opening night at the Everyman. A late substitution brought us Constance Novis in the title role, rather than the advertised Julie Unwin, but this young Canadian singer proved fully up to the role. This was true not only of her vocal performance where a more delicate than usual approach proved ideal for this production's slimmed down orchestration but also of her acting. Here, one felt, was indeed a great diva but one still possessed of an endearing naivety, which was certainly evident in her coquettish treatment of her lover Cavaradossi (Michael Bracegirdle). That she is possessed, too, of tremendous bravery and moral strength was apparent in her robust response to put it mildly! to the odious advances of the murderous lecher Baron Scarpia (Craig Smith).

Staged against black backgrounds, with well-handled modulations of lighting (Aideen Malone), Tim Carroll's sure-handed production concentrated attention on the protagonists and achieved a rare intimacy for what can often, with Tosca, be an overblown 'blockbuster' night. I greatly enjoyed it.

Tosca is given again at the Everyman tomorrow night, with Jenufa tonight (01242 572573). Next week the 'people's opera house' rolls to the Warwick Arts Centre with the same two productions (024 7652 4524). ETO singers present a concert of opera favourites as part of The Live Arts programme at St Mary's Church in Banbury on Thursday at 1pm. More information at www.livearts-at-stmarys.co.uk. Tickets cost £5 from Banbury Tourist Information Centre (Tel. 01295 259855).