Live from the Met

This video captures a real rarity: one of the very few times the brilliant Plácido Domingo performed both of the great tenors roles during the same evening at the Met. Domingo singing either Turiddu (in Cavalleria) or Canio (in Pagliacci) would be remarkable, but to get both in the same incandescent performance is to see history. With James Levine’s passionate conducting, Franco Zeffirelli’s iconic production, and the sensational singing actors Tatiana Troyanos (Santuzza), Teresa Stratas (Nedda), and Sherrill Milnes (Tonio), these searing one-act operas blaze. Performance date: April 5, 1978.

The Princess Elisabetta, the daughter of the French King, was betrothed to Don Carlos, the son of the Spanish King, Philip II. Affairs of state make Elisabetta the wife of the Spanish monarch, to the despair of Carlos. James Levine conducts, and the principal singers are Placido Domingo, Mirella Freni, Nicolai Ghiaurov, Grace Bumbry and Louis Quilico. The production, in its fifth year, is by John Dexter, and even on the small screen one can sense its dark, massive and ominous character. Telecast from the stage of the Metropolitan Opera House in a performance taped on March 26, 1983. (This was never televised; it was a radio broadcast.)

This atmospheric production by Piero Faggioni, conducted by James Levine, captures all the brooding power and elegance of Verdi’s drama of love and politics. Luciano Pavarotti stars as Riccardo, the unlucky ruler in love with his best friend’s wife, Amelia (Aprile Millo). Leo Nucci is the husband torn between loyalty and his thirst for revenge, and Florence Quivar sings Ulrica, the fortuneteller who prophesizes the tragic ending. Performance date: January 26, 1991.

Giancarlo Del Monaco’s atmospheric production brings to colorful life a 19th-century mining camp during the California Gold Rush. At the center of the action is the good-hearted bar owner Minnie, sung by Barbara Daniels, who takes a motherly interest in the miners. Plácido Domingo is Dick Johnson, also known as the bandit Ramerrez, who falls in love with Minnie. Sherrill Milnes sings Jack Rance, the sheriff who is not only determined to capture Ramerrez but also wants Minnie for himself. Bloodshed, a crooked poker game, a snowstorm, and a near lynching ensue before Minnie and her bandit-turned-lover can ride off to start a new life. Leonard Slatkin conducts one of Puccini’s most colorful scores. (This was broadcast on Bravo on July 18, 1983; cannot see that it was ever broadcast on PBS.) Performance date: April 8, 1992.

Wagner’s enchanting Nürnberg has perhaps never looked as marvelous as in this production by Otto Schenk, with sets designed by Günther Schneider-Siemssen. James Levine’s conducting is as authoritative as it is affectionate, and the orchestra, the chorus, and the all-star cast which could not be equaled anywhere else in the world—respond with a riveting performance. James Morris is a wise, avuncular Hans Sachs; Ben Heppner’s beautifully sung Walther is a perfect match for Karita Mattila’s radiant Eva; and René Pape and Thomas Allen turn in stellar performances. Performance date: December 8, 2001.

Elijah Moshinsky’s witty production deftly walks the line between the lighthearted humor and the profound philosophical underpinnings of Strauss and Hofmannsthal’s opera, masterfully conducted here by Met Music Director James Levine. Deborah Voigt stars as Ariadne, the mythical heroine abandoned on the island of Naxos by her lover, and Richard Margison is Bacchus, the young god who eventually takes her away to a new life. The spectacular Natalie Dessay as Zerbinetta leads the troupe of comedians who unsuccessfully try to cheer Ariadne up. Susanne Mentzer is delightful as the young Composer of the opera-within-the-opera, and Wolfgang Brendel sings the Music Master. Performance date: April 3, 2003.