Esclarmonde

Parisian audiences in 1889 were thrilled by Massenet’s wizardry in telling the story of Esclarmonde, the princess of Byzantium with magical powers, and her love for the heroic knight Roland. But the title role was so difficult that the opera languished for decades, until Joan Sutherland, with her dazzling ability to sing the most fearsome embellishments, brought this jewel of an opera to life for modern audiences.