TURANDOT Returns to the Met Conducted by Carlo Rizzi

Franco Zeffirelli's staging of Puccini's final opera Turandot returns to the Met from October 12 for an initial ten performances through to November 16 starring soprano Oksana Dyka in the title role and tenor Aleksandrs Antonenko as Calàf. Led by Carlo Rizzi, performances also feature soprano Maria Agresta as Liù with bass-baritone James Morris as Timur.

Later in the season, there's a further opportunity to see the much loved production with five performances from March 21 to April 5 featuring soprano Martina Serafin as Turandot, tenor Marcelo Álvarez as Calàf, soprano Guanqun Yu as Liù, and bass-baritone Alexander Tsymbalyuk as Timur, conducted by Marco Armiliato. For two performances, on November 16 and April 5, soprano Hei-Kyung Hong will be seen as Liù, a role she has sung in over 30 performances with the company.

This revival marks Met role debuts for both Oksana Dyka and Aleksandrs Antonenko. The Ukranian soprano made her company debut as Yaroslavna in Borodin's Prince Igor in 2014, followed by performances in the title roles of Verdi's Aida, Puccini's Tosca, and Janá?ek's Jen?fa. Other recent credits include Tatiana in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin at Los Angeles Opera, the title roles of Aida and Tosca at La Scala, and Cio-Cio-San in Puccini's Madama Butterfly at both Los Angeles Opera and the Bavarian State Opera.

Latvia's Aleksandrs Antonenko has sung the role of Calàf at La Scala and the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Most recently, he starred in the Met's 2015-16 season premiere in the title role of Verdi's Otello, Don José in Bizet's Carmen, Pollione in Bellini's Norma, Grigory in Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov, Luigi in Puccini's Il Tabarro, and the Prince in Dvo?ák's Rusalka. In November, he will sing in the Met's concert performances of Verdi's Requiem.

Maria Agresta made her Met debut in 2016 as Mimì in Puccini's La Bohème followed by Micaëla in Carmen. Her recent credits with other companies include the title role of Norma at Teatro Regio di Torino and Zurich Opera, Amelia Grimaldi in Verdi's Simon Boccanegra at La Fenice, and Violetta in Verdi's La Traviata at the Paris Opera, Bavarian State Opera, and Royal Opera, Covent Garden. The Italian singer has previously sung Liù at La Scala. She will be seen later this season as Leonora in Verdi's Il Trovatore at the Met.

American James Morris last Sang Timur at the Met in 2015. He has sung almost 200 company performances, including most recently Ramfis in Aida, Don Fernando in Beethoven's Fidelio, the Grand Inquisitor in Verdi's Don Carlo, the Commendatore in Mozart's Don Giovanni, and Sachs in Wagner's Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg.

Martina Serafin made her company debut in 2013 as Sieglinde in Wagner's Die Walküre followed by the Marschallin in Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier. The Austrian artist's credits with other companies include the title roles of Puccini's Manon Lescaut at the Hamburg State Opera and Tosca at La Scala, Vienna State Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Paris Opera, and the Royal Opera, Covent Garden.

Argentina's Marcelo Álvarez has previously sung Calàf for the company, in a career that has included more than 130 Met performances in 16 roles, most recently in his role debut as des Grieux in Manon Lescaut, the lead tenor roles in the double bill of Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana and Leoncavallo's Pagliacci, the title role of Giordano's Andrea Chénier, and Radamès in Aida. After Turandot, he will be back at the Met again in April to sing the role of Cavaradossi in the company's new production of Tosca.

Guanqun Yu makes her company role debut as Liù, a role she has sung at Bregenz Festival and Oper Köln. Later this season, the Chinese artist will reprise Liù and also sing Micaëla in Carmen at Zurich Opera, Mimì in La Bohème at the Bavarian State Opera, and Amelia Grimaldi in Simon Boccanegra at the Hamburg State Opera.

Alexander Tsymbalyuk has previously sung Timur at the Met, La Scala, and the Hamburg State Opera. He made his Met debut in 2010 as Ferrando in Il Trovatore and later sang Lodovico in Verdi's Otello in 2013. In 2018, the Ukrainian can also be seen as Prince Gremin in Eugene Onegin at the Hamburg State Opera and Fasolt in Wagner's Das Rheingold at the Bavarian State Opera and Munich Opera Festival.

The Italian maestros leading Turandot have a wealth of experience at the Met. Carlo Rizzi, conductor of the company's current new production of Norma, made his company debut in 1993 and since then has conducted over 180 performances at the house. Marco Armiliato has conducted over 400 performances for the company since 1998 and has led 32 performances of Turandot. He will lead two other Puccini operas this season with the Met: La Bohème and Madama Butterfly.

The October 12 performance will be broadcast live on Metropolitan Opera Radio on SIRIUS XM Channel 75, as will the performances on October 17, November 8, March 24, and April 5. The October 17 and April 5 performances will also be streamed live on the Met's Web site, www.metopera.org.

The March 24 performance will be broadcast live over the Toll Brothers-Metropolitan Opera International Radio Network.