Nightly Opera Streams, September 14–20

Explore a thrilling lineup of bel canto masterpieces—including favorite operas by Donizetti, Rossini, and Bellini—with this guide to the week.

View the Playbills from the original performance dates for each stream, including synopses, program notes, and more.

Last May, tenor Matthew Polenzani and director Bartlett Sher joined Met Executive Stage Director Paula Suozzi for a virtual conversation about L’Elisir d’Amore and took questions about the opera from students.

She’s a spunky orphan, he’s the local country boy, and together they deliver unforgettable vocal fireworks. Learn more about Donizetti's French farce with our In Focus podcast

Bellini’s bel canto masterpiece is an unsurpassed showcase for vocal virtuosity, especially for the sopranos who dare to tackle the fearsome title role. Learn about some of the great artists who have taken on the challenge at the Met over the last 130 years.

Throwing herself wholly into every role she played, French soprano Natalie Dessay was one of the Met’s most magnetic artists for more than two decades.

Otto Schenk’s 2006 staging of Donizetti’s bel canto gem Don Pasquale is a dazzling display of comedic prowess from a director better known at the Met for his work in heavier repertoire.

Discover some of the great divas who have thrilled and terrified Met audiences with their mad scenes over the past half-century.

Go behind the scenes of the creation of Bartlett Sher’s Met-premiere staging of Rossini’s whimsical comedy Le Comte Ory.

Before taking on the formidable title role of Norma, a powerful Druid priestess struggling to balance her public and personal identities, soprano Sondra Radvanovsky spoke about her character and her career—and the connections between the two.

The director of the Met’s vivacious staging of Rossini’s Le Comte Ory discusses his take on the opera in this video looking forward to the production’s 2011 premiere.

In his imaginative production of L’Elisir d’Amore, director Bartlett Sher uncovers the patriotic fervor simmering underneath the opera’s enchanting surface charm.

Superstar soprano Anna Netrebko has appeared in more Live in HD transmissions than any other principal artist. Watch highlights from a dozen of her roles, including this week’s stream of Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur.

The Met’s 2017 new production of Norma lavished Bellini’s bel canto masterpiece with an exceptional cast and evocative visuals. In this video, soprano Sondra Radvanovsky and director Sir David McVicar discuss the work’s transcendent music and the production’s depiction of druidic history. 

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