Lady Macbeth

After Shakespeare wrote MACBETH,  maybe there was not much else left to say about ambition, power, guilt, lust. Then along comes Giuseppe Verdi. Now Anna Netrebko.    

Verdi's MACBETH opened the 2014-15 season of the Metropolitan Opera's Live in HD, its ninth of high definition broadcasts to 2,000 movie theaters in 69 countries.

The first encore of the season is scheduled for Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. local time.

Diva Netrebko's Lady Macbeth:

"...a sensation at the Metropolitan Opera, winning roars from audiences...and rave reviews." -- New York Times.

"The smoky, covered timbre, expanded to full-throttle volume, and the piercing, steel-edged top were perfect for this single-minded character, driven by an ambition that stops at nothing." -- Wall Street Journal.

"One of the greatest triumphs in Met history." -- Bloomberg.

"What Netrebko lacks in subtlety, she makes up for in bosom." -- Cotterpen.  

The reminder of the season:

MoMozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro

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October 18, 2014, 12:55 pm ET. Encore: Wed., Oct. 22, 2014, 6:30 p.m.

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. Dashing bass-baritone Ildar Abdrazakov leads the cast in the title role of the clever servant, opposite Marlis Petersen as his bride, Susanna, Peter Mattei as the philandering Count they work for, Amanda Majeski as the long-suffering Countess, and Isabel Leonard as the libidinous pageboy Cherubino.

Approximate running time 3:50

 

Bizet’s Carmen

November 1, 2014, 12:55 pm ET. Encore: Wed., Nov. 5, 2014, 6:30 p.m.

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, Escamillo, who comes between them. Pablo Heras-Casado conducts the irresistible score, which features one beloved and instantly recognizable melody after another.

Approximate running time 3:40

Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia

November 22, 2014, 12:55 pm ET. Encore: Wed., Nov. 26, 6:30 p.m.

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 and charming barber, himself. Michele Mariotti conducts the vivid and tuneful score.

Approximate running time 3:25

Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg

December 13, 2014, 12 pm ET. Encore: Wed., Dec. 17, 6:30 p.m.

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. Michael Volle, Johan Botha, and Annette Dasch lead the superb international cast in this charming and magisterial celebration of the power of music and art.

Approximate running time 6:00

Lehár’s The Merry Widow—New Production

January 17, 2015, 12:55 pm ET. Encore: Wed, Jan 21, 6:30 p.m.

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 and her design team of Julian Crouch and costume designer William Ivey Long, creating an art-nouveau setting that climaxes with singing and dancing grisettes at the legendary Maxim’s. Nathan Gunn co-stars as Danilo and Kelli O’Hara is Valencienne. Andrew Davis conducts.

Approximate running time 3:00

Offenbach's Les Contes d'Hoffmann

January 31, 2015, 12:55 pm ET. Encore: Wed., Feb. 4, 6:30 p.m.

The magnetic tenor Vittorio Grigolo takes on the tortured poet and unwitting adventurer of the title of Offenbach’s operatic masterpiece, in the Met’s wild, kaleidoscopic production. Hibla Gerzmava, Erin Morley, and Christine Rice sing the three heroines—each an idealized embodiment of some aspect of Hoffmann’s desire. Thomas Hampson portrays the shadowy Four Villains, and Yves Abel conducts.

Approximate running time 3:45

Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta /
Bartok's Bluebeard's Castle—New Production

February 14, 2015, 12:30 pm ET. Encore: Wed., Feb. 18, 6:30 p.m.

On the heels of her triumphant Met performances in Eugene Onegin, soprano Anna Netrebko takes on another Tchaikovsky heroine in the first opera of this intriguing double bill, consisting of an enchanting fairy tale (Iolanta) followed by an erotic psychological thriller (Duke Bluebeard’s Castle). Netrebko stars as the beautiful blind girl who experiences love for the first time in Iolanta, while Nadja Michael is the unwitting victim of the diabolical Bluebeard, played by Mikhail Petrenko. Both operas are directed by Mariusz Trelinski, who was inspired by classic noir films of the 1940s. Iolanta also stars Piotr Beczala, and Valery Gergiev conducts both operas.

Approximate running time 3:40

Rossini’s La Donna del Lago—Met Premiere

March 14, 2015, 12:55 pm ET. Encore: Wed., March 18, 6:30 p.m.

Bel canto superstars Joyce DiDonato and Juan Diego Flórez join forces for this Rossini showcase of vocal virtuosity, set in the medieval Scottish highlands and based on a beloved novel by Sir Walter Scott. DiDonato is the “lady of the lake” of the title, and Flórez is the king who relentlessly pursues her, their vocal fireworks embellishing the romantic plot in this Met premiere production conducted by Michele Mariotti.

Approximate running time 3:30

Mascagni’s Cavalleria Rusticana /
Leoncavallo's Pagliacci—New Production

April 25, 2015, 12:30 pm ET, Encore Wed, Apr. 29, 6:30 p.m.

Opera’s most enduring tragic double bill. Marcelo Álvarez  playing the dual tenor roles of Turiddu in Cavalleria Rusticana and Canio in Pagliacci.bbb Eva-Maria Westbroek (Cav) and Patricia Racette (Pag) sing the unlucky heroines, and Met Principal Conductor Fabio Luisi is on the podium.

Approximate running time 3:30