LES PECHEURS DE PERLES to Return to the Met Stage for the First Time Since 1916

A new production of Bizet's LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES (The Pearl Fishers), a rarity by the composer of Carmen that has not been seen at the Met in nearly a century, opens in a new production this New Year's Eve.

The opera, conducted by Gianandrea Noseda and directed by Penny Woolcock, tells the story of a beautiful Hindu priestess pursued by rival pearl divers competing for her hand. Highlights of the score include "Au fond du temple saint," perhaps the best-known duet for two male voices in the operatic repertory. Diana Damrau leads the cast as the priestess Leïla, opposite Matthew Polenzani as Nadir, Mariusz Kwiecien as Zurga, and Nicolas Testé as the high priest Nourabad.

Woolcock's staging of LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES is a co-production with English National Opera, where it premiered in 2010. It features set design by Dick Bird in his Met debut, costume design by Kevin Pollard, lighting design by Jen Schriever, projection design by 59 Productions, and movement direction by Andrew Dawson. The January 16 matinee performance will be transmitted worldwide as part of the Met's Live in HD series, which now reaches more than 2,000 movie theaters in 70 countries around the world.

The January 27 and February 4 performances will be conducted by Antony Walker, with Amanda Woodbury singing the role of Leïla on February 4.

ABOUT THE CAST AND CONDUCTOR:

Diana Damrau has previously sung the role of Leïla at Vienna's Theater an der Wien. Last season at the Met, she received rave reviews in the title role of Massenet's Manon. In earlier Met seasons, the German soprano sang her first-ever performances of Violetta in Verdi's La Traviata and Amina in Bellini's La Sonnambula to great acclaim. In 2005, she made her Met debut as Zerbinetta in Strauss's Ariadne auf Naxos, and since then, she has sung over 100 performances with the company including Rosina in Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Pamina and the Queen of the Night in Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, the Countess Adèle in the Met premiere of Rossini's Le Comte Ory, the title role in Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor, Adina in Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Amore, and Gilda in Verdi's Rigoletto. Later this season, she will star as the title character in Manon at the Vienna State Opera; the title role of Lucia di Lammermoor at the Teatro Regio Torino and Royal Opera, Covent Garden; Elvira in Bellini's I Puritani at the Teatro Real de Madrid; and Violetta in La Traviata at the Orange Festival.

This season marks Matthew Polenzani's role debut as Nadir. He has sung over 315 performances with the Met since his company debut in 1997 as Boyar Kruschev in Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov. Other credits with the company include Ferrando in Mozart's Così fan tutte, the title character in Offenbach's Les Contes d' Hoffmann, Nemorino in L'Elisir d'Amore, Leicester in the Met premiere of Donizetti's Maria Stuarda, and the Duke in Rigoletto. Later this season, he will star in the title role of the Met premiere of Donizetti's Roberto Devereux, followed by performances as Rodolfo in Puccini's La Bohème at the Gran Teatre del Liceu.

Mariusz Kwiecien has previously sung the role of Zurga at the Teatro Real in Madrid. He made his Met debut in 1999 as Kuligin in Janá?ek's Ká?a Kabanová, and since then, he has sung over 180 performances with the company. His other roles at the Met include the Count in Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro and Rodolfo in La Bohème last season, Riccardo Forth in Bellini's I Puritani, Onegin in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin, Belcore in L'Elisir d'Amore, and the title role of Mozart's Don Giovanni. After starring as the Duke of Nottingham opposite Polenzani in the company's premiere of Roberto Devereux, he will sing Posa in Verdi's Don Carlo at the San Francisco Opera later this season.

Nicolas Testé has previously sung Nourabad in Valencia and at the Vienna State Opera. Last season, he sang opposite Damrau as Comte des Grieux in Manon, and prior to the performance, he made his Met debut in La Bohème as Colline. His other performances this season include Raimondo in Lucia di Lammermoor at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Teatro Regio Torino, and Théâtre des Champs-Elysées; Giorgio in I Puritani at the Teatro Real in Madrid; and Doctor Grenvil in La Traviata at the Orange Festival.

Gianandrea Noseda is the Music Director of the Teatro Regio Torino, Laureate Conductor of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Principal Conductor of the Orquestra de Cadaqués, and Artistic Director of Italy's Stresa Festival. He made his Met debut conducting Prokofiev's War and Peace in 2002 and has conducted eight other operas with the company since, which include Verdi operas such as Un Ballo in Maschera, Il Trovatore, La Traviata, and Macbeth; Lucia di Lammermoor; Borodin's Prince Igor; and Giordano's Andrea Chénier. Later this year, he will conduct Damrau and Testè in Lucia di Lammermoor at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées and Teatro Regio Torino, Casella's La Donna Serpente at Teatro Regio Torino, and Il Trovatore at the Royal Opera, Covent Garden.

Antony Walker made his Met debut conducting Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice in 2011. In addition to being the Music Director of the Pittsburgh Opera, he is the Artistic Director of the Washington Concert Opera and the Co-Artistic Director of Pinchgut Opera in Australia. He has conducted over 200 operas and symphonic and chamber works around the world with opera houses such as the Rome Opera, English National Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Canadian Opera Company, and Santa Fe Opera. He is conducting performances of The Barber of Seville and then National Council Finals at the Met later this season.

ABOUT THE CREATIVE TEAM:

The award-winning British TV and film director Penny Woolcock directed the premiere of this staging of LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES at the English National Opera in 2010. She made her opera-directing debut with the Met premiere of John Adams's Dr. Atomic during the 2008-09 season. She is known for her breakthrough film Tina Goes Shopping; Macbeth on the Estate, a gritty, present-day setting of Shakespeare's play; The Margate Exodus, a modern-day telling of the Book of Exodus; and The Death of Klinghoffer. In 2013, she directed Storyville: From the Sea to the Land Beyond - Britain's Coast on Film based upon the human condition from primitive life of the working class in the early 1900s to recent times. In 2014, she directed the television documentary Going to the Dogs, which investigated inner city dog fighting in the UK, as well as the film documentary One Mile Away, about urban gangs.

Dick Bird makes his Met debut designing sets for this production. He previously designed sets for LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES at the English National Opera, Berlioz's Beatrice et Benedict and von Weber's Der Freischütz at L'Opéra Comique, and Rossini's La Donna del Lago at the Royal Opera, Covent Garden. In addition to his opera credits, Bird has designed for ballet, which includes The Canterville Ghost for the English National Ballet and Aladdin for the Birmingham Royal Ballet, as well as theatre including The Night Season at the National Theatre, Harvest at Royal Court Theatre, and Othello and As You Like It at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre.

Kevin Pollard has previously designed for the Met and made his company debut designing costumes for Philip Glass's Satyagraha during the 2007-08 season and then the pastoral pastiche The Enchanted Island during the 2011-12 season. His costume designs have been seen around the world for opera productions such as The Magic Flute at the Welsh National Opera, Satyagraha at the English National Opera, Saariaho's L'amour de Loin at the English National Opera, Viaamse Opera, and Canadian Opera Company, as well as LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES at the English National Opera. He has also designed for musicals including A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at the Royal National Theatre and Danny Champion of the World, Top of the World, and Beasts and Beauties at the Spike Theatre.

Jen Schriever previously designed lighting for Strauss's Die Fledermaus in 2013, which is a part of this season's repertory. Her opera credits include lighting designs for LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES at the English National Opera and La Traviata, Gounod's Faust, and Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Mariinsky Theatre. Schriever has also created lighting designs for multiple Broadway shows, including Ghetto Klown, Raisin in the Sun, Death of a Salesman, The Book of Mormon, and Fences. Later this season, her lighting design for the Public Theater's Eclipsed will be taken to Broadway.

59 Productions has previously designed projections for the Met including Satyagraha, Dr. Atomic, Nico Muhly's Two Boys, and The Enchanted Island. Their visual content has been created for multiple opera companies including the Sydney Opera House, Salzburg Festival, Teatro Real in Madrid, Berlin State Opera, English National Theatre, and the Royal Opera, Covent Garden. Along with opera, their work spans across film and television, galleries and museums, live music events, dance, and theatre on Broadway and the West End.

Andrew Dawson was previously the Movement Director for LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES at the English National Opera and made his Met debut during the 2008-09 season as the Movement Director for Doctor Atomic. Other credits include being the Movement Director for the European premiere of Our Town in 2011, A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Bristol Old Vic in 2013, in addition to producing his solo show 'Absence and Presence' in 2005, which was seen at the Edinburgh Festival and held subsequent performances in New York and Los Angeles.

LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES, FUN FACTS:

During the mid-1800s, it was difficult for new composers and new works to be seen at the two major opera houses in Paris, the Paris Opera and the Opéra-Comique. Although Georges Bizet was not well-known at the time, he won the prestigious Prix de Rome at age 25 and was commissioned to write LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES. The opera was staged at the Théâtre Lyrique, which was eventually known for the premieres of Gounod's Roméo et Juliette and Faust, Wagner's Rienzi, and Berlioz's Les Troyens à Carthage.

LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES had its first Met performance in 1896, when only the first two of the opera's three acts were performed as part of a matinee showcasing the talents of the French soprano Emma Calvé. The opera was performed in its entirety on opening night of the 1916-17 Met season, with Frieda Hempel as Leïla and Enrico Caruso as Nadir.

LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES LIVE IN HD/RADIO BROADCASTS:

The January 16 matinee performance of LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES will be transmitted live around the world at 12:55 p.m. ET hosted by Patricia Racette. The transmission will be seen in more than 2,000 movie theaters in 70 countries around the world. The January 12 and January 16 performances of LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES will be broadcast live on Metropolitan Opera Radio on SIRIUS XM Channel 74. The performances on December 31 and February 4 will also be streamed live on the Met's website, www.metopera.org.

The January 16 matinee performance will be broadcast live over the Toll Brothers-Metropolitan Opera International Radio Network.

For more information on LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES including casting by date, click here.

Pictured: A scene in Bizet's LES PÊCHEURS DE PERLES from the English National Opera. Photo by Mike Hoban.