Has anyone ever seen an Offenbach with the requisite fizz or a Viennese piece where the waltzes have just the right lilt? In my experience these go down like a lead balloon. The text and the style simply do not translate.

Perhaps it is time for the likes of G&S or Sweeney Todd at the Met. Other companies have done them with success. I would sooner see them than Die Fledermaus or The Merry Widow in English again.