Peter Grimes or ambiguous the various characters are. Pears was certainly the intended Peter Grimes, and it is likely that Britten wrote the role of Ellen Orford for Joan Cross. The work has been called "a powerful allegory of homosexual oppression", and one of "the true operatic masterpieces of the 20th century", but the composer's own contemporary (1948) summation of the work was simpler: a subject very close to my heart — the struggle of the individual against the masses. The more vicious the society, the more vicious the individual. Though as the writing of the libretto progressed, certain versions showed Grimes'
Peter Glossop York, was in 1971 as Scarpia in "Tosca". Later roles for the Metropolitan Opera included Don Carlo in "La forza del destino", Mr Redburn in "Billy Budd", Balstrode in "Peter Grimes" and the title roles in "Falstaff" and "Wozzeck". His career continued into the mid-1980s with appearances in London and the main European and American opera houses. His further repertory included Don Carlo in "Ernani", Mandryka in "Arabella", Pizarro in "Fidelio" and the title roles in "The Flying Dutchman" and "Macbeth". Glossop made a number of recordings. These include "Macbeth" with Rita Hunter in the 1960s, "Billy Budd" under the