FRANZ LEHAR 2014-2015 HD OPERA SEASON JANUARY 17 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS The great Renée Fleming stars as the beguiling femme fatale who captivates all Paris in Lehár’s enchanting operetta, seen in a new staging by Broadway virtuoso director and choreographer Susan Stroman (The Producers,Oklahoma!, Contact). Stroman and her design team of Julian Crouch […]

RICHARD WAGNER 2014-2015 HD OPERA SEASON DECEMBER 13, 2014 @ 12:00 PM RUN TIME: 6 HRS James Levine returns to one of his signature Wagner works conducting this epic comedy—back at the Met for the first time in eight years—about a group of Renaissance “master singers” whose song contest unites a city. Johan Reuter, Johan Botha, and […]

GIACHINO ROSSINI 2014-2015 HD OPERA SEASON NOVEMBER 22 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 25 MIN The Met’s effervescent production of Rossini’s classic comedy—featuring some of the most instantly recognizable melodies in all of opera—stars Isabel Leonard as the feisty Rosina, Lawrence Brownlee as her conspiring flame, and Christopher Maltman as the endlessly resourceful […]

GEORGES BIZET 2014-2015 HD OPERA SEASON NOVEMBER 1 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 40 MIN Richard Eyre’s mesmerizing production of Bizet’s steamy melodrama returns with mezzo-soprano Anita Rachvelishvili singing her signature role of the ill-fated gypsy temptress. Aleksandrs Antonenko plays her desperate lover, the soldier Don José, and Ildar Abdrazakov is the swaggering bullfighter, […]

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART 2014-2015 HD OPERA SEASON OCTOBER 18, 2014 @ 1:00 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 50 MIN Met Music Director James Levine conducts a spirited new production of Mozart’s masterpiece, directed by Richard Eyre, who sets the action of this classic domestic comedy in an 18th-century manor house in Seville during the 1930s. […]

GEORGE FRIDRICH HANDEL, ANTONIO VIVALDI, JEAN-PHILIPPE RAMEAU DEVISED AND WRITTEN BY JEREMY SAMS 2013-2014 HD OPERA SEASON JULY 16, 2014 @ 7:00 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 15 MIN In one extraordinary new work, lovers of Baroque opera have it all: the world’s best singers, glorious music of the Baroque masters, and a story drawn from […]

GIACOMO PUCCINI DEVISED AND WRITTEN 2013-2014 HD OPERA SEASON JUNE 25, 2014 @ 7:00 PM RUN TIME: 2 HRS Puccini’s achingly beautiful score charmingly conveys the plight of Magda (the “swallow” of the title), who unexpectedly finds true love with the handsome young Ruggero. But their idyllic life comes to a premature end as she is […]

GIUSEPPI VERDI 2013-2014 HD OPERA SEASON JUNE 18, 2014 @ 7:00 PM RUN TIME: 2 HRS 30 MIN Michael Mayer’s acclaimed production, the talk of the opera world when it premiered in 2013, sets the action of Verdi’s masterpiece in 1960 Las Vegas—a neon-lit world ruled by money and ruthless, powerful men. In this bold new […]

GIACHINO ROSSINI 2013-2014 HD OPERA SEASON MAY 10, 2014 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 40 MIN A peerless pair of Rossini virtuosos joins forces in La Cenerentola—a vocal tour de force for mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato, singing her first Met performances of the Cinderella title role, and the high-flying tenor Juan Diego Flórez, as her […]

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART 2013-2014 HD OPERA SEASON APRIL 26, 2014 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 4 HRS 5 MIN Music Director James Levine conducts Mozart’s beloved opera about testing the ties of love. The cast is filled with youthful Met stars: Susanna Phillips and Isabel Leonard are the sisters Fiordiligi and Dorabella, Matthew Polenzani and […]

GIACOMO PUCCINI 2013-2014 HD OPERA SEASON APRIL 5, 2014 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 25 MIN Puccini’s moving story of young love is the most performed opera in Met history—and with good reason. Anita Hartig stars as the frail Mimì in Franco Zeffirelli’s classic production, with Vittorio Grigolo as her passionate lover, Rodolfo. […]

JULES MASSENET 2013-2014 HD OPERA SEASON MARCH 1, 2014 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 15 MIN Two of opera’s greatest artists—Jonas Kaufmann and Elīna Garanča—appear together for the first time at the Met in Massenet’s sublime adaptation of Goethe’s revolutionary and tragic romance. It is directed and designed by Richard Eyre and Rob […]

ALEXANDER BORODIN 2013-2014 HD OPERA SEASON MARCH 1, 2014 @ 12:00 PM RUN TIME: 4 HRS 30 MIN Borodin’s defining Russian epic, famous for its Polovtsian Dances, comes to the Met for the first time in nearly 100 years. Dmitri Tcherniakov’s new production is a brilliant psychological journey through the mind of its conflicted hero, […]

GIUSEPPE VERDI 2013-2014 HD OPERA SEASON DECEMBER 14, 2013 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 20 MIN An undisputed master of Falstaff, Music Director James Levine conducts Verdi’s opera for the first time at the Met since 2005. Robert Carsen’s production—the first new Met Falstaff since 1964—is set in the English countryside in the mid-20th century. Ambrogio […]

GIACOMO PUCCINI 2013-2014 HD OPERA SEASON NOVEMBER 9, 2013 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 35 MIN Puccini’s timeless verismo score is well served by an exceptional cast, led by Patricia Racette in the title role of the jealous diva, opposite Roberto Alagna as her lover, Cavaradossi. George Gagnidze is the villainous Scarpia. Text […]

PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON OCTOBER 5, 2013 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 45 MIN Anna Netrebko and Mariusz Kwiecien star as the lovestruck Tatiana and the imperious Onegin in Tchaikovsky’s fateful romance. Deborah Warner’s new production, set in the late 19th century, moves episodically from farmhouse to ballroom, with a […]

GIOACHINO ROSSINI 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON JULY 10, 2013 @ 7PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 5 MIN This mythical story of a sorceress who enthralls men in her island prison has inspired operatic settings by a multitude of composers, including Gluck, Haydn, and Dvorˇák. Renée Fleming stars in the title role of Rossini’s version, opposite […]

GIUSEPPE VERDI 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON JUNE 26, 2013 @ 7 PM RUN TIME: 2 HRS 40 MIN David McVicar’s stirring production of Verdi’s intense drama premiered in the 2008–09 season. This revival stars four extraordinary singers—Sondra Radvanovsky, Dolora Zajick, Marcelo Álvarez, and Dmitri Hvorostovsky—in what might be the composer’s most melodically rich score. Text […]

GEORGES BIZET 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON JUNE 19, 2013 @ 7 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS  10 MIN One of the most popular operas of all time, Carmen “is about sex, violence, and racism—and its corollary: freedom,” says Olivier Award-winning director Richard Eyre about his new production of Bizet’s drama. “It is one of the […]

GEORGE FRIDERIC HANDEL 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON APRIL 27, 2013 @ 12:00 PM RUN TIME: 4 HRS 30 MIN David McVicar’s second new production of the season is this dynamic staging of Giulio Cesare, a hit at the Glyndebourne Festival in 2005, which incorporates elements of Baroque theater and 19th-century British imperialism to illuminate the […]

RICCARDO ZANDONAI 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON MARCH 16, 2013 @ 12:00 PM RUN TIME: 4 HRS Zandonai’s early 20th-century melodrama Francesca da Rimini returns to the Met for its first revival in more than 25 years, in Piero Faggioni’s opulent and realistic production. Marco Armiliato conducts Eva-Maria Westbroek in the title role of a noblewoman who […]

RICHARD WAGNER 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON MARCH 2, 2013 @ 12:00 PM RUN TIME: 5 HRS 40 MIN Jonas Kaufmann makes his Met role debut as the title character in Parsifal, conducted by Daniele Gatti and directed by noted film and opera director François Girard in his Met debut. “Parsifal is not just an opera—it’s […]

GIUSEPPI VERDI 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON FEBRUARY 16, 2013 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 30 MIN Rising Italian conductor Michele Mariotti leads the new production premiere of Rigoletto, seen in a new staging by the Tony Award-winning director Michael Mayer in his Met debut. Mayer’s approach transports the story from 16th-century Italy to […]

GAETANO DONIZETTI 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON JANUARY 19, 2013 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 15 MIN David McVicar, who directed last season’s Met premiere of Anna Bolena, directs the company premiere of the second opera in Donizetti’s famous trilogy of operas about Tudor history. “Donizetti’s three Tudor operas are very different in tone, mood, and […]

HECTOR BERLIOZ 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON JANUARY 5, 2013 @ 12:00 PM RUN TIME: 5 HRS 30 MIN Francesca Zambello’s acclaimed 2003 production of Berlioz’s Trojan War epic returns to the Met for its first revival. Fabio Luisi conducts a cast led by Marcello Giordani in the central role of Aeneas, the hero who flees the […]

GIUSEPPE VERDI 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON DECEMBER 15, 2012 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 4 HRS Verdi’s iconic opera set in ancient Egypt stars powerhouse Ukrainian soprano Liudmyla Monastyrska, who makes her Met debut in the title role of an enslaved Ethiopian princess. Olga Borodina, one of the world’s best-known interpreters of the role, sings Aida’s […]

GIUSEPPE VERDI 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON DECEMBER 8, 2012 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 4 HRS Verdi’s vivid drama of jealousy and vengeance will be seen in a new production by acclaimed opera director David Alden, returning to the Met for the first time in more than 20 years. Fabio Luisi conducts his first Met […]

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON DECEMBER 1, 2012 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 15 MIN Mozart’s final Italian opera, La Clemenza di Tito, features a charismatic cast conducted by Baroque specialist Harry Bicket and led by Giuseppe Filianoti as the title character, a Roman emperor. Barbara Frittoli is the vengeful Vitellia, daughter […]

THOMAS ADES 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON NOVEMBER 10, 2012 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS British composer Thomas Adès makes his company debut conducting the Met premiere of his opera The Tempest, which has been widely praised as a modern masterpiece. Robert Lepage’s innovative production recreates the interior of the La Scala opera house as […]

GAETANO DONIZETTI 2012-2013 HD OPERA SEASON OCTOBER 13, 2012 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS The Live in HD season begins October 13 with a new production of Donizetti’s comic gem L’Elisir d’Amore, directed by Bartlett Sher and conducted by Maurizio Benini. Anna Netrebko makes her Met role debut as the beautiful landowner Adina, […]

GAETANO DONIZETTI 2010-2011 HD OPERA SEASON JULY 18, 2012 @ 7:00 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 35 MIN Anna Netrebko sings the title role of Donizetti’s fragile heroine in her Met role debut, with tenor Piotr Beczala in the part of her lover, Edgardo. Baritone Mariusz Kwiecien is her tyrannical brother. Mary Zimmerman’s hit production […]

GIUSEPPE VERDI 2011-2012 HD OPERA SEASON APRIL 14, 2012 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 5 MIN Natalie Dessay puts on the red dress in Willy Decker’s stunning production, in her first Violetta at the Met. Matthew Polenzani sings Alfredo, Dimitri Hvorostovsky is Germont, and Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi is on the podium. Text courtesy […]

JULES MASSENET 2011-2012 HD OPERA SEASON APRIL 7, 2012 @ 12:00 PM RUN TIME: 4 HRS 5 MIN Laurent Pelly’s new production stars Anna Netrebko as the free-spirited beauty Manon Lescaut in Puccini’s first hit opera. The story of the magnetic attraction between two young lovers is the perfect vehicle for the soprano’s exhilarating charisma, especially when […]

GIUSEPPE VERDI 2011-2012 HD OPERA SEASON FEBRUARY 25, 2012 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 50 MIN Angela Meade takes center stage in Verdi’s thrilling early gem. Marcello Giordani is her mismatched lover, and all-star Dmitri Hvorostovsky and Ferruccio Furlanetto round out the cast. CONDUCTOR Marco Armiliato PRODUCTION: Pie Luigi Samaritani CAST: Angela Meade, Marcello […]

RICHARD WAGNER 2011-2012 HD OPERA SEASON FEBRUARY 11, 2012 @ 12:00PM RUN TIME: 6 HRS Original transmission date: Saturday, February 11, 2012 With its cataclysmic climax, the Met’s new Ring cycle, directed by Robert Lepage, comes to its resolution. Deborah Voigt stars as Brünnhilde and Jay Hunter Morris is Siegfried—the star-crossed lovers doomed by fate.  Fabio Luisi Conducts. Text courtesy […]

GEORGE FRIDRICH HANDEL, ANTONIO VIVALDI, JEAN-PHILIPPE RAMEAU DEVISED AND WRITTEN BY JEREMY SAMS 2011-2012 HD OPERA SEASON JANUARY 21, 2012 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 35 MIN In one extraordinary new work, lovers of Baroque opera have it all: the world’s best singers, glorious music of the Baroque masters, and a story drawn […]

CHARLES GOUNOD 2011-2012 HD OPERA SEASON DECEMBER 10, 2011 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 39 MIN With Jonas Kaufmann in the title role, René Pape as the devil, and Marina Poplavskaya as Marguerite, Gounod’s classic retelling of the Faust legend couldn’t be better served.  Tony Award-winning director Dec McAnuff updates the story to […]

GEORGE FRIDERIC HANDEL 2011-2012 HD OPERA SEASON DECEMBER 3, 2011 @ 12:30PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 51 MIN Sensational in the 2004 Met premiere of Stephen Wadsworth’s much-heralded production, Renée Fleming reprises the title role. She’s joined by Stephanie Blythe and countertenor Andreas Scholl. Baroque specialist Harry Bicket conducts. Text courtesy of The Metropolitan Opera website:  http://www.metopera.org CONDUCTOR: […]

PHILIP GLASS 2011-2012 HD OPERA SEASON NOVEMBER 19, 2011 @ 12:55 PM RUN TIME: 3 HRS 45 MIN The Met’s visually extravagant production returned for its second season.  Richard Croft once again is Gandhi in Philip Glass’s unforgettable opera, which the Washington Post calls “a profound and beauitful work of theater.” Satyagraha features minimal subtitles.  Composer Philip Glass […]

RICHARD WAGNER 2011-2012 HD OPERA SEASON NOVEMBER  5, 2011 @ 12:00 PM RUN TIME: 5 HRS 29 MIN In part three of the Ring, Wagner’s cosmic vision focuses on his hero’s early conquests while Robert Lepage’s revolutionary stage machine transforms itself from bewitched forest to mountaintop love nest. Jay Hunter Morris sings the title role and Deborah Voigt’s Brünnhilde […]