Mother courage
Maxim Kolomiiets‘s urgent The Mothers of Kherson premieres in Warsaw ahead of its Metropolitan Opera run.
Mantua man
San Diego Opera’s Rigoletto, starring a persuasive Michael Chioldi, veers traditional—without the mothballs in tow.
Philly fluff
Two Philadelphia institutions present delectable performances of sex and filth (of the best kind).
La bohème is better in translation
There are Bohèmes and Bohèmes, and it is almost a joke word these days, but the French show us how it is properly done.
Broadcasts / Live Chat
La fille du régiment
Evelino Pidò conducts Erin Morley and Xabier Anduaga in a live broadcast from Vienna
Streaming and discussion start Nov 7 at 1:00 PM
Comment
Don Giovanni
Konstantin Krimmel sings the lead role in a performance recorded at the Edinburgh Festival
Streaming and discussion start Nov 14 at 1:00 PM
Comment
Eight Veils: Asmik Grigorian in Concert
Asmik Grigorian sings Puccini, Dvořák, Verdi, and Strauss with Petras and Lukas Geniušas
Streaming and discussion start Nov 18 at 7:25 PM
Comment
Ariadne auf Naxos
Golda Schultz, Serena Sáenz, and Daniel Behle lead a performance conducted by Franz Welser-Möst live from Vienna.
Streaming and discussion start Nov 25 at 1:00 PM
Comment
Ariadne auf Naxos
Barrie Kosky's new production starring Golda Schultz, Serena Sáenz, Kate Lindsey, and Daniel Behle in a live video broadcast from Vienna
Streaming and discussion start Nov 28 at 1:00 PM
Comment
Recent Stories
Broadcast
Salome / Cincinnati Opera
Kathryn Lewek sings the title role in a performance recorded in Cincinnati in June
Streamed November 1, 2026 at 8:00 PM
64 comments
Broadcast
Parsifal / Royal Ballet and Opera
Jakub Hrůša conducts Stanislas de Barbeyrac in a performance recorded earlier this month in London.
Streamed October 31, 2026 at 1:00 PM
8 comments
I’ll take the fall
The days are getting shorter, but you can keep the prattle going this fall’s Talk of the Town! You will, you can, you must join in the discussion about: Great mezzo soprano performances (October),
Gained in translation (November), Teleport me back to… (December).
A favorite mezzo performance from Damian
This performance by Marilyn Horne has always stunned me and everyone I play it for.
By Damian
60 comments
Broadcast
Medea / Metropolitan Opera
Sonya Yoncheva sings the title role in live a broadcast from New York
Streamed October 30, 2026 at 7:25 PM
161 comments
Broadcast
Das Lied von der Erde / Deutsche Radio Philharmonie
Josep Pons conducts Beth Taylor and Klaus Florian Vogt in a live broadcast from Saarbrücken
Streamed October 30, 2026 at 1:00 PM
Comment
A favorite mezzo performance from Remko Jas
Some singers only need a few seconds to show what they are all about. Listen to Ursula Hesse von den Steinen in this stunning performance to see what I mean.
By Remko Jas
32 comments
Artists in residence
Marina Rebeka and Jonas Kaufmann are heading to New York for Tosca, so Parterre Box offers a sample of the two of them in a different Puccini opera.
The virtue of being Verdi
At the Festival Verdi, the “mondi lontani” of Nabucco and Aida lead back to universal, Verdian virtues.
Broadcast
Siegfried / Bayerische Staatsoper
Benjamin Bruns, Simone Schneider, and Nicholas Brownlee star in a live performance from Munich
Streamed October 29, 2026 at 9:00 AM
12 comments
Another favorite mezzo performance from Mr. Portafiori
One of my favorite mezzo performances is Tatiana Troyanos in Cavalleria rusticana.
By Mr. Portafiori
64 comments
Broadcast
Verdi Requiem / Teatro alla Scala
Riccardo Chailly conducts Anna Netrebko, Fabio Sartori, Ekaterina Gubanova, and Michele Pertusi in a live broadcast from Milan
Streamed October 28, 2026 at 3:00 PM
21 comments
Lipsync for your life
Heartbeat Opera’s Queeney Todd draws together New York’s queer theater multiverse in a stunning drag production that breathes new life into the opera and leaves the audience in stitches.
A favorite mezzo performance from Ryan Ellermann
One of the greatest to ever do it.
By Ryan Ellermann
50 comments
Broadcast
Siegfried / Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia
Clay Hilley sings the title role with Elisabet Strid and Michael Volle in a performance conducted by Daniel Harding live from the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome
Streamed October 27, 2026 at 12:00 PM
20 comments
Near, far, wherever you are
Parma’s annual Festival Verdi traversed “distant worlds” of crusades, conquests, and colonial struggles, stopping first in Peru for the seldom-heard Alzira.
Voices of the past
Rhiannon Giddens and Michael Abels’s Omar fascinates and frustrates in equal measure in Chicago.
A favorite mezzo performance from Elvira, back from the dead
Oralia Dominguez: deranged, demented, an absolute triumph.
By Elvira, back from the dead
29 comments
Wait, wait, don’t tell me
Seokyoung looks at how five different versions of “Un bel dì” support and subvert the stakes of Cio-Cio-San’s famous wait for Perspectives on an Aria.
A favorite mezzo performance from Ben Miller
Remember, kids: if you sing with a “splatty” chest you’ll lose access to your top, which is why Agnes Baltsa had such a short international career.
A favorite mezzo performance from Camille
One of the few truly great mezzos I’ve heard in the 21st century here at the Metropolitan.
By Camille
19 comments
Would you say I have a plethora of piñatas?
Domingo Hindoyan makes an auspicious debut as LA Opera’s Music Director against a distractingly busy production of Carmen.
A favorite mezzo performance from Carmen Paddock
Every Baroque opera could be more feral, especially when cross-dressing is involved.
Broadcast
Alcina / Royal Ballet and Opera
Lisette Oropesa stars opposite Emily D'Angelo, Mary Bevan, and Beth Taylor in a performance recorded this fall in London
Streamed October 24, 2026 at 1:00 PM
35 comments