By now, most opera fans have received the news that the Metropolitan Opera is foregoing a fall season due to continued concerns over Covid-19 crisis safety. The Met is tentatively planning a January 2021 startup, preceded by a special Gala on New Year’s Eve, December 31, 2020.
Clearly, this series of free nightly streamings of performances from Live In HD has been extremely popular and has given opera fans some welcome relief from the stay-at-home blues. Amazingly, the series continues into the 15th Week, running the stylistic gamut from Massenet’s Cendrillon to Saint-Saëns’s Samson et Dalila to John Adams’s Doctor Atomic along with Verdi’s La Traviata and an historical performance from 1991 of Donizetti’s Elixir of Love (L’Elisir d’Amore) with Luciano Pavarotti and Kathleen Battle, with James Levine in the pit.
A different streaming begins each evening at 7:30 PM from the Met Opera website and is available for 23 hours until 6:30 PM EDT the following day. [https://www.metopera.org]
The streams are also available through the Met Opera on Demand apps for Apple, Amazon, and Roku devices and Samsung Smart TV. To access them without logging in, click “Browse and Preview” in the apps for connected TV, and “Explore the App” on tablets and mobile devices.
The coronavirus pandemic has had—and continues to have—serious economic implications for the arts and all whom depend on them for enrichment, entertainment…and employment. The recovery when it comes will not be quick or easy. Everyone will need to help both local and national organizations to the extent of their ability. If you have enjoyed this generous contribution the Met has made to keeping us sane during these trying times, keep them in mind when considering possible donations.
Schedule for June 21 – June 28
Sunday, June 21
Philip Glass: Satyagraha
Starring Rachelle Durkin, Richard Croft, Kim Josephson, and Alfred Walker, conducted by Dante Anzolini.
(November 19, 2011)
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Monday, June 22
Verdi: La Traviata
Starring Sonya Yoncheva, Michael Fabiano, and Thomas Hampson, conducted by Nicola Luisotti.
(March 11, 2017)
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Tuesday, June 23
John Adams: Doctor Atomic
Starring Sasha Cooke, Thomas Glenn, Gerald Finley, and Richard Paul Fink, conducted by Alan Gilbert
(November 8, 2008)
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Wednesday, June 24
Saint-Saëns: Samson et Dalila
Starring Elīna Garanča, Roberto Alagna, Laurent Naouri, Elchin Azizov, and Dmitry Belosselskiy, conducted by Sir Mark Elder.
(October 20, 2018)
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Thursday, June 25
Massenet: Manon
Starring Lisette Oropesa, Michael Fabiano, Carlo Bosi, Artur Ruciński, Brett Polegato, and Kwangchul Youn, conducted by Maurizio Benini
(October 26, 2019)
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Friday, June 26
Donizetti: L’Elisir d’Amore
Starring Kathleen Battle, Luciano Pavarotti, Juan Pons, and Enzo Dara, conducted by James Levine
(November 16, 1991)
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Saturday, June 27
Massenet: Cendrillon
Starring Kathleen Kim, Joyce DiDonato, Alice Coote, Stephanie Blythe, and Laurent Naouri, conducted by Bertrand de Billy
(April 28, 2018)
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Sunday, June 28
Mozart: Die Zauberflöte
Starring Golda Schultz, Kathryn Lewek, Charles Castronovo, Markus Werba, Christian Van Horn, and René Pape, conducted by James Levine
(October 14, 2017)
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