English opera director Tom Hawkes (1938-2023) passed away earlier this month.

Hawkes directed over 500 operatic productions worldwide. He served as the artistic director of Phoenix Opera and director of productions for Handel Opera and worked with the Belgian National Opera and Opera Theatre of St Louis. Hawkes is credited for directing five operas for English National Opera at the London Coliseum.

In 2017 Hawkes retired after directing Donizetti’s “L’elisir d’amore” at the Singapore Lyric Opera.

After his retirement, Hawkes became a full-time caregiver for his partner. During lockdown he became an avid painter as a way to document his home in the English country.