Winter 2020–21 Listings
December 3
Puccini’s Tosca
Tosca (Freni), a singer, gives herself to the Roman police chief, Scarpia (Ramey), to save her painter boyfriend, Cavaradossi (Domingo).
December 10
Berlioz’s La Damnation de Faust
An aged philosopher, Faust (Lewis), sells his soul to the devil, Méphistophélès (Terfel), in exchange for another shot at youth, then seduces the beautiful Marguerite (Von Otter).
December 17
Cimarosa’s Il Matrimonio Segreto
Paolino (Davies) is secretly married to Carolina (Auger), younger daughter of Geronimo (Fischer-Dieskau). (From the Ruocchio Archives.)
December 24
Christmas Eve at the Opera House
Sacred Christmas music performed by past- and present-day opera stars.
December 31
J. Strauss’s Die Fledermaus
Eisenstein (Kmentt) accepts Falke’s (Berry) invitation to a party; wife Rosalinde (Gueden) is visited by an old flame, Alfred (Zampieri); maid Adele (Köth) goes to the party of Prince Orlofsky (Resnik).
January 7
Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen
A clever, sharp-eared fox known as the Vixen (Watson) learns about life while on short adventures with other wildlife and a few humans.
January 14
Verdi’s Don Carlo
Don Carlo (Sylvester) is engaged to Elisabetta (Millo), but his father Filippo II (Furlanetto) marries her instead. Rodrigo (Chernov) tries to reconcile father and son but the Grand Inquisitor (Ramey) forces the king to assassinate him.
January 21
Offenbach’s Les Contes d’Hoffmann
A poet, Hoffmann (Domingo), is inspired by three muses (Gruberová) but several villains (Bacquier, Morris, Diaz) conspire against him. (From the Ruocchio Archives.)
January 28
Mozart’s, et al., Der Stein der Weisen & Der Wohltätige Derwisch
First performed in 1790 and 1791, The Philosopher’s Stone and The Beneficient Dervish are pastiches—with music by Mozart, Henneberg, Schack, Gerl, and Schikaneder—that anticipate The Magic Flute.
February 4
Rossini’s Otello
Otello (Carreras) is in love with Desdemona (Von Stade), who’s been promised by her father, Elmiro (Ramey), to Rodrigo (Fisichella). Iago (Pastine) tells Otello that she’s been unfaithful.
February 11
Bernstein’s On the Town & West Side Story
On a 24-hour leave in New York City, three sailors (Garrison, Ollmann, Hampson) meet and connect with three women (Von Stade, Daly, McLaughlin). In a modern Romeo and Juliet story, a Puerto Rican woman, Maria (Te Kanawa), falls in love with a “real” American, Tony (Carreras).
February 18
Bellini’s Norma
A Druid priestess, Norma (Callas), is in a love triangle with her best friend, Adalgisa (Ludwig), and the father of her children, Pollione (Corelli). (From the Ruocchio Archives.)
February 25 Debussy’s Pelléas et Mélisande
After meeting Mélisande (Ewing) while hunting in the forest, Prince Golaud (Van Allen) marries her and then introduces his new wife to his half-brother, Pelléas (Le Roux)—and they promptly begin an adulterous relationship.