Tickets for the third season of The Met: Live in HD, the Metropolitan Opera's live transmissions in movie theaters around the world, go on sale to the general public on Friday August 22. The 2008-09 season kicks off on Monday, September 22 at 6:00 p.m. ET (5:00 p.m. CT / tape delayed to 7:00 p.m. MT / 6:00 p.m. PT), with the first of the Met's eleven live opera transmissions, the Opening Night Gala starring Renée Fleming in staged scenes from three of her most acclaimed roles.
Over 850 theatres in approximately 30 countries around the world are participating in The Met: Live in HD this season; several independent cinemas, performing arts organizations, and universities in the United States will be presenting the series for the first time.
The Opening Night Gala, featuring Fleming, includes Act II of Verdi's La Traviata, Act III of Massenet's Manon, and the final scene of Richard Strauss's one act opera, Capriccio. Five new productions are featured in the series, including the Met premiere of John Adams' contemporary masterpiece Doctor Atomic; the rarely-staged masterwork La Damnation de Faust by Berlioz, featuring Marcello Giordani and
Susan Graham; Massenet's Thaïs starring Renée Fleming; Puccini's La Rondine with Angela Gheorghiu and
Roberto Alagna; and Bellini's La Sonnambula starring Natalie Dessay and Juan Diego Flórez. Other highlights of the HD season include Karita Matilla's acclaimed portrayal of the title role in Salome; Anna Netrebko and Rolando Villazón in Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor; Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice with Stephanie Blythe and Danielle de Niese; Puccini's Madama Butterfly starring Cristina Gallardo-Domâs and Giordani; and Rossini's La Cenerentola featuring Elīna Garanča. Complete casting and details of the season's The Met: Live in HD performances follows below.
The Opening Night Gala transmission will be seen in the Americas only; the remaining ten high-definition productions will be shown live worldwide on Saturdays through May 9 with most encore presentations in the United States shown on Wednesdays, 11 days after the live exhibition. Ticket sales to the general public begin in the U.S. and Canada on Friday, August 22, at the box office of participating theaters and online. For complete information on locations and tickets, visit www.metopera.org/hdlive or call 1-800-Met-Opera (1-800-638-6737).
The Met: Live in HD has expanded its distribution in the 2008-09 season to include almost 30 countries, with more to follow. New countries joining the HD network this season include Argentina (Teatro 25 Mayo), Costa Rica (Centro Cultural Cosarricense Norteamericano), Croatia (Aero Cinemas), Estonia (Finnkino), Finland (Bio Rex and Finnkino), Hungary (The Palace of Arts), Ireland (through Opera Ireland), Latvia (Finnkino), Mexico (Auditorio Nacional), New Zealand (Rialto Cinemas), and South Africa (Sterkinekor Films). The Met: Live in HD returns in the following locations: Australia (through Sharmill Films); the Netherlands (Pathé, CineMec Ede, and Foroxity Film Arena); Austria (presented by ClasArt); the Czech Republic (Aero Cinemas); Belgium (Kinepolis), United Kingdom (City Screen/Picturehouses and Cineworld Cinemas Limited); Norway (Tromsø Film Festival and Kino Norway); Denmark (Nordisk Film Biografer); Sweden (FHP Sweden); Germany (presented by ClasArt); France (CielEcran and Kinepolis), Luxembourg (Utopia), Poland (Arthur Rubenstein Philharmonic and Aero Cinemas), and Japan (Shochiku).
The Met's Live in HD series will reach more than 445 theaters in the U.S. through a renewed partnership with National CineMedia, including transmissions in AMC Entertainment Inc., Cinemark USA Inc., Clearview Cinemas, Georgia Theatre Company, Goodrich Quality Theatres Inc., Hollywood Theaters, Kerasotes Theatres, Loeks Theatres, Malco Theatres, Marcus Theatres, National Amusements Inc., Regal Entertainment Group, and various independent movie theaters. Up to 100 theaters in Canada will participate through a renewed partnership with Cineplex Entertainment; with locations in Canada's Atlantic Provinces participating through a renewed partnership with Empire Theatres. Locations in Puerto Rico are made possible through Caribbean Cinemas.
Participating independent cinemas, performing arts organizations, and colleges in the U.S. include: Arlington Theatre (Santa Barbara, CA); Music Academy of the West (Santa Barbara, CA); Douglass Theatre (Macon, GA); The Grand (Ellsworth, ME); Baltimore Lyric Opera House (Baltimore, MD); The Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam (Potsdam, NY); The Majestic Theater at Gettysburg College (Gettysburg, PA); The Paramount Theater (Charlottesville, VA). These partners join other independent theaters that transmitted the Met's HD series last year: Arena Theatre (Point Arena, CA); Quick Center for the Performing Arts, Fairfield University (Fairfield, CT); Society of the Four Arts (Palm Beach, FL); the Russel E. and Fern M. Hettenhausen Center for the Arts, McKendree College (Lebanon, IL); The Cape Cinema Group (Dennis, MA); The Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center (Great Barrington, MA); Strand Theater (Rockland, ME); State Theater (Traverse City, MI); Saint Louis Art Museum (St. Louis, MO); Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center at Hixon-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts, University of Nebraska-Lincoln (Lincoln, NE), Film Streams Inc. (Omaha, NE), Hopkins Center for the Arts, Dartmouth College (Hanover, NH); Music Hall (Portsmouth, NH); The Lensic Performing Arts Center (Santa Fe, NM);
Brooklyn Academy Of Music's Rose Cinemas (Brooklyn, NY); Staller Center for the Arts/SUNY Stonybrook (Stonybrook, NY), Mary D'Angelo Performing Arts Center, Mercyhurst College (Erie, PA); Penn Cinema (Lititz, PA), State Theater (State College, PA); and The Rose Theater (Townsend, WA), and those from the inaugural season which also participated last season: The Lark Theater (Larkspur, CA); Rialto Cinemas Lakeside (Santa Rosa, CA); the Browning Cinema, Marie P. DeBartolo Center for the Performing Arts, University of Notre Dame (Notre Dame, IN); Time and Space LTD (Hudson, New York); and Lincoln Center's Walter Reade Theater (New York, NY).
The Met: Live in HD series is made possible by a generous grant from the Neubauer Family Foundation.
The Met: Live in HD 2008-09 Season
Monday, September 22, 2008 OPENING NIGHT GALA (6:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m. CT / tape delayed to 7:00 p.m. MT / 6:00 p.m. PT/seen in the Americas only) - Opening Night Gala starring Renée Fleming in fully staged performances of scenes from three different operas: Verdi's La Traviata (Act II), Massenet's Manon (Act III), and the final scene from Richard Strauss's Capriccio. Tenor Ramón Vargas and baritones Thomas Hampson and Dwayne Croft co-star. Met Music Director James Levine, Marco Armiliato, and Patrick Summers conduct. The HD live transmission will be hosted by
Susan Graham.
Saturday, October 11, 2008 SALOME (1:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. CT / 11:00 a.m. MT / 10:00 a.m. PT/ 17:00 p.m. UTC / 18:00 p.m. BST / 19:00 CEST) - Soprano Karita Mattila reprises her acclaimed interpretation of the title character of Strauss's Salome, with baritone Juha Uusitalo as Jochanaan. Mikko Franck conducts.
Saturday, November 8, 2008 DOCTOR ATOMIC (1:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. CT / 11:00 a.m. MT / 10:00 a.m. PT/ 18:00 p.m. UTC / 19:00 p.m. CET) - Penny Woolcock directs the Metropolitan Opera premiere of John Adams's Doctor Atomic, starring Gerald Finley as Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer and Sasha Cooke as his wife, Kitty, with Eric Owens and Richard Paul Fink.
Alan Gilbert conducts. NEW PRODUCTION/MET PREMIERE
Saturday, November 22, 2008 LA DAMNATION DE FAUST (1:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. CT / 11:00 a.m. MT / 10:00 a.m. PT/ 18:00 p.m. UTC; 19:00 p.m. CET) - Robert Lepage directs Berlioz's La Damnation de Faust, starring Marcello Giordani in the title role, with
Susan Graham as Marguerite and John Relyea as Méphistophélès. James Levine conducts. (A new production reconceived in collaboration with Ex Machina for the Met, based on a co-production of the Saito Kinen Festival and Opéra National de Paris.) NEW PRODUCTION
Saturday, December 20, 2008 THAÏS (12:00 p.m. ET / 11:00 a.m. CT / 10:00 a.m. MT / 9:00 a.m. PT/ 17:00 p.m. UTC; 18:00 p.m. CET) - Renée Fleming stars in the title role of Massenet's Thaïs, with Thomas Hampson as the monk Athanaël in John Cox's production, which originated at Lyric Opera of Chicago. Jesús López-Cobos conducts. NEW PRODUCTION
Saturday, January 10, 2009 LA RONDINE (1:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. CT / 11:00 a.m. MT / 10:00 a.m. PT/ 18:00 p.m. UTC; 19:00 p.m. CET) - Nicolas Joël directs Puccini's La Rondine, starring Angela Gheorghiu and
Roberto Alagna in a production originally mounted by the Théâtre du Capitole, Toulouse, and the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Marco Armiliato conducts. (Co-production with the Théâtre du Capitole, Toulouse, and the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.) NEW PRODUCTION
Saturday, January 24, 2009 ORFEO ED EURIDICE (1:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. CT / 11:00 a.m. MT / 10:00 a.m. PT/ 18:00 p.m. UTC; 19:00 p.m. CET) - Stephanie Blythe and Danielle de Niese star in
Mark Morris's production of Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice. James Levine conducts.
Saturday, February 7, 2009 LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR (1:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. CT / 11:00 a.m. MT / 10:00 a.m. PT/ 18:00 p.m. UTC; 19:00 p.m. CET) - Dynamic opera duo Anna Netrebko and Rolando Villazón star in Mary Zimmerman's acclaimed production of Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor. Marco Armiliato conducts.
Saturday, March 7, 2009 MADAMA BUTTERFLY (1:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. CT / 11:00 a.m. MT / 10:00 a.m. PT/ 18:00 p.m. UTC; 19:00 p.m. CET) - Cristina Gallardo-Domâs sings the title role of Puccini's Madama Butterfly in Anthony Minghella's stunning production. Marcello Giordani stars as Pinkerton. Patrick Summers conducts.
Saturday, March 21, 2009 LA SONNAMBULA (1:00 p.m. ET / 12:00 p.m. CT / 11:00 a.m. MT / 10:00 a.m. PT/ 17:00 p.m. UTC; 18:00 p.m. CET) - Natalie Dessay and Juan Diego Flórez star in Mary Zimmerman's new production of Bellini's La Sonnambula, conducted by Evelino Pidò. NEW PRODUCTION
Saturday, May 9, 2009 LA CENERENTOLA (12:30 ET / 11:30 a.m. CT / 10:30 a.m. MT / 9:30 a.m. PT/ 16:30 p.m. UTC; 17:30 BST; 18:30 p.m. CEST) - Elīna Garanča stars in Rossini's bel canto Cinderella story, La Cenerentola. Lawrence Brownlee stars as her Prince Charming, Don Ramiro. Maurizio Benini conducts.
About the Met
Under the leadership of General Manager Peter Gelb and Music Director James Levine, the Met has a series of bold initiatives underway that are designed to broaden its audience and revitalize the company's repertory. The Met has made a commitment to presenting modern masterpieces alongside the classic repertory, with highly theatrical productions featuring the greatest opera stars in the world.
The Metropolitan Opera's 2008-09 season pays tribute to the company's extraordinary history on the occasion of its 125th anniversary, while also emphasizing the Met's renewed commitment to advancing the art form. The upcoming season features six new productions, 18 revivals, the final performances of Otto Schenk's production of Wagner's Ring cycle conducted by Levine, and two gala celebrations; the galas include the season-opening performance featuring Renée Fleming as well as a 125th anniversary celebration on March 15. New productions include the company premiere of John Adams's Doctor Atomic as well as the Met's first staged production of Berlioz's La Damnation de Faust, and Massenet's Thaïs, Puccini's La Rondine, Verdi's Il Trovatore, and Bellini's La Sonnambula. Future seasons include new presentations of John Corigliano's The Ghosts of Versailles (2009-10) and Thomas Adès's The Tempest (2011-12).
Building on its 77-year-old international radio broadcast history - heard over the Toll Brothers-Metropolitan Opera International Radio Network - the Met now uses advanced media distribution platforms and state-of-the-art technology to attract new audiences and reach millions of opera fans around the world.
The Met: Live in HD series reached more than 920,000 people in the 2007-08 season, more than the number of people who saw performances in the opera house. These performances began airing on PBS in March 2008, and eight of these HD performances are currently or will soon be available on DVD, on the EMI and Universal labels. In the 2008-09 season, the series expands to feature 11 live transmissions, starting with the Met's Opening Night Gala and spanning the entire season. The HD productions will be seen in over 850 theaters in approximately 30 countries around the world. Five new productions will be featured, including the Met premiere of John Adams's Doctor Atomic. The Opening Night transmission will be seen in the Americas only; the remaining ten high-definition productions will be shown live worldwide on Saturdays through May 9 with encores the following Wednesdays.
Live in HD in Schools, the Met's new program offering free opera transmissions to New York City schools in partnership with the New York City Department of Education and the Metropolitan Opera Guild, reached more than 7,000 public school students and teachers during the 2007-08 season. This season, Live in HD in Schools expands to reach schools in 18 cities and communities nationwide.
Metropolitan Opera Radio on SIRIUS channel 78 is a subscription-based audio service broadcasting both live and rare recorded historical performances. In addition to providing audio recordings through the new Met on Rhapsody on-demand service, the Met also presents free live audio streaming of performances on its website once every week during the opera season with support from RealNetworks®.
The company's groundbreaking commissioning program in partnership with New York's
Lincoln Center Theater (LCT), provides renowned composers and playwrights with the resources to create and develop new works at the Met and at Lincoln Center's Vivian Beaumont Theater. The Met's partnership with LCT is part of the company's larger initiative to commission new operas from contemporary composers, present modern masterpieces alongside the classic repertory, and provide a venue for artists to nurture their work.
The Met has launched several audience development initiatives such as the company's Open House Dress Rehearsals, which are free and open to the public; two are planned for the 2008-09 season with operas and dates to be announced. The Met also presents a free performance of the Verdi Requiem on September 18, in tribute to the late
Luciano Pavarotti. Other company initiatives include the Arnold and Marie Schwartz Gallery Met which exhibits contemporary visual art; the immensely successful Agnes Varis and Karl Leichtman Rush Ticket program which provides deeply discounted orchestra seats two hours before curtain time; and an annual Holiday Series presentation for families. This season's special Holiday Presentation is
Julie Taymor's production of Mozart's The Magic Flute, an abridged, English-language version of the opera which is given four special matinee performances and one holiday evening performance as a way for families to celebrate the holiday season.
In November, the Met Opera Shop re-opens in a completely transformed space that includes an array of products that reflects the company's creativity and heritage, including a collection of classical music CDs and DVDs, listening stations, and video monitors.
