Saturday May 9th: The Metropolitan Opera New York presents La fille du régiment by Donizetti
A bel canto classic that guarantees astounding singing, Donizetti's ebullient comedy returns to the Met, with soprano Erin Morley making her role debut as Marie, the intrepid 'daughter of the regiment'. She stars alongside high-flying tenor Lawrence Brownlee as her admirer, Tonio, with mezzo-soprano Susan Graham as Marie's long-lost mother, the Marquise of Berkenfield, and bass-baritone Peter Kálmán as the gruff but goodhearted Sgt. Sulpice. Golden Globe Award-winning actress Sandra Oh makes an exciting Met debut as the Duchess of Krakenthorp.
Saturday May 16th: The Metropolitan Opera New York presents Verdi's Don Carlo
Tonight's production comes from the archives of the Metropolitan Opera New York, with the first radio broadcast of Verdi's magnificent opera. The company had not performed the work since the 1920s when Rudolf Bing opened his first season as general manager with it, five days before this performance. The production introduced two spectacular new singers to New York: Cesare Siepi (King Philip) and Fedora Barbieri (Eboli). Add Jussi Björling in the title role and Robert Merrill as his friend, Rodrigo, and it's easy to see why this now legendary cast thrilled audiences-and why Don Carlo has since become a staple of the Met repertoire.
Saturday May 23rd: The Metropolitan Opera New York presents Turandot by Puccini
Franco Zeffirelli's glittering take on Puccini's final masterpiece returns to the stage with three extraordinary casts bringing the rousing score to life. Sopranos Anna Pirozzi stars in the title role of the vengeful princess, whose frozen heart is thawed by the courageous prince Calàf, portrayed by tenor Brian Jagde. Oksana Lyniv conducts the Chorus and Orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera
Saturday May 30th: The Metropolitan Opera New York presents El Último Sueño de Frida y Diego by Gabriela Lena Frank
American composer Gabriela Lena Frank makes her Met debut with her first opera, a magical-realist portrait of Mexico's painterly power couple Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, with libretto by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Nilo Cruz. Fashioned as a reversal of the Orpheus and Euridice myth, the story depicts Frida, sung by leading mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard, leaving the underworld on the Day of the Dead and reuniting with Diego, portrayed by baritone Carlos Álvarez. The famously feuding pair briefly relive their tumultuous love, embracing both the passion and the pain before bidding the land of the living a final farewell. Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts the Met premiere this evening.
