Live in HD Series 2008-2009

"The Met's experiment of merging film with live performance has created a new art form," said the Los Angeles Times of the groundbreaking series of live, high-definition performance transmissions to movie theaters around the world. To meet increasing global demand, The Met: Live in HD expands in its third season to present eleven transmissions in 2008–09, up from eight. The HD productions will be seen in almost 800 venues and a number of new countries in South America and Europe are joining the network this season. Don't miss the chance to experience the Met live at your local movie theatre, now including Dubuque!

Iowa Public Radio is teaming up with the Metropolitan Opera and movie theatres in Ames, Cedar Falls, Dubuque, Iowa City and West Des Moines to bring you this unique cinema experience.

PURCHASE DISCOUNTED TICKET VOUCHERS
THROUGH IOWA PUBLIC RADIO CLASSICAL!

Iowa Public Radio is offering discounted ticket vouchers online for each opera in the HD series to our IPR Classical listeners for $12 each. Discounted vouchers at each theatre location are very limited. Vouchers will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis. Please remember to select the appropriate opera screening(s), the number of vouchers you are requesting and for which theatre location(s). Purchases must be made with a valid credit card. Vouchers will be mailed. You must present your voucher to the theatre box office to redeem for a valid ticket. Arriving early at the theatre is recommended to complete the ticket redemption process.

PURCHASE DISCOUNTED VOUCHERS BY CALLING 800-861-8000.

Participating Theatres:
Ames: Movies 12 (1317 Buckeye Avenue)
Cedar Falls: College Square 12 (1065 College Square Mall)
Dubuque: Star Cinema 14 (2835 NW Arterial)  NEW ADDITION!
Iowa City: Sycamore 12 (1602 Sycamore Street)
West Des Moines: Jordan Creek 20 (101 Jordan Creek Parkway)


Past simulcasts:

Opening Night Gala
La Traviata (Act II) – Verdi
Manon (Act III) – Massenet
Capriccio (Final Scene) – Richard Strauss
Monday, September 22, 2008 (5:00 pm CT)
 Red Carpet start time noted;
Performance starts 30 minutes later

For the season-opening gala starring Renée Fleming, Music Director James Levine and Marco Armiliato conduct fully staged performances of the second act of Verdi's La Traviata, the third act of Massenet's Manon, and the final scene from Richard Strauss' Capriccio. Tenor Ramón Vargas and baritones Thomas Hampson and Dwayne Croft join the soprano.

Conductors: James Levine and Marco Armiliato; Renée Fleming, Ramón Vargas, Thomas Hampson, Dwayne Croft

(Discounted vouchers for 9/22 no longer available through IPR - contact your local theatre for regular-priced tickets.)

Download the cast sheet and synopsis.
 


Salome – Strauss
Saturday, October 11, 2008 (12:00 pm CT)
Wednesday, October 22, 2008 (7:00 pm CT)

Running time: 1 hour, 37 minutes.

Karita Mattila caused a sensation when she sang Salome at the Met for the first time in 2004. She reprises her stunning interpretation of the part, including her unforgettable Dance of the Seven Veils.

Conductor: Mikko Franck; Production: Jürgen Flimm; Karita Mattila, Ildikó Komlósi, Juha Uusitalo, Kim Begley, Joseph Kaiser

Download the cast sheet and synopsis.


 

Doctor Atomic (Met premiere) – Adams
Saturday, November 8, 2008 (12:00 pm CT)
Wednesday, November 19, 2008 (7:00 pm CT)

Running time: 3 hours, 21 minutes.

John Adams' contemporary masterpiece explores a momentous episode of modern history: the creation of the atomic bomb. Director Penny Woolcock makes her Met debut with this gripping story that changed the course of history. Baritone Gerald Finley plays J. Robert Oppenheimer, the title character.

Conductor: Alan Gilbert; Production: Penny Woolcock; Sasha Cooke, Meredith Arwady, Gerald Finley, Eric Owens, Richard Paul Fink

Visit the Doctor Atomic minisite.

Download the cast sheet and synopsis.

 

 

La Damnation de Faust (new production) – Berlioz
Saturday, November 22, 2008 (12:00 pm CT)
Wednesday, December 3, 2008 (7:00 pm CT)

Running time: 2 hours, 45 minutes.

Robert Lepage, one of theater's most imaginative directors, applies his artistry to Berlioz's contemplation of good and evil. Using projections, Lepage has created a vision for La Damnation de Faust that seamlessly marries art and technology. Marcello Giordani stars in the title role opposite Susan Graham as Marguerite and John Relyea as Méphistophélès. James Levine conducts this rarely staged masterwork.

Conductor: James Levine; Production: Robert Lepage; Susan Graham, Marcello Giordani, John Relyea

Download the cast sheet and synopsis.
 

 

Thaïs (new production) – Massenet
Saturday, December 20, 2008 (11:00 am CT)
Wednesday, January 7, 2009 (7:00 pm CT)

Running time: 3 hours, 21 minutes.

Renée Fleming stars as the Egyptian courtesan in search of spiritual sustenance. Thomas Hampson is the monk who falls from grace. Massenet's sensual opera is presented in a new production by John Cox.

Conductor: Jesús López-Cobos; Production: John Cox; Renée Fleming, Thomas Hampson, Michael Schade

Download the cast sheet and synopsis.

 


La Rondine (new production) – Puccini
Saturday, January 10, 2009 (12:00 pm CT)
Wednesday, January 21, 2009 (7:00 pm CT)

Running time: 2 hours, 15 minutes.

Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna provide the star power to deliver this ravishing romance from the world's most popular opera composer. Gheorghiu plays the kept woman who gambles on true love, and Alagna is the man who makes her question the cost of her glittering existence. Nicolas Joël directs the new production of this gorgeously melodic look at love.

Conductor: Marco Armiliato; Production: Nicolas Joël; Angela Gheorghiu, Lisette Oropesa, Roberto Alagna, Marius Brenciu, Samuel Ramey

Download the cast sheet and synopsis.

 


Orfeo ed Euridice – Gluck
Saturday, January 24, 2009 (12:00 pm CT)
Wednesday, February 4, 2009 (7:00 pm CT)

Running time: 1 hour, 31 minutes.

Mark Morris' acclaimed production returns. This complete vision for Gluck, with choreography by Morris and costumes by Isaac Mizrahi, features the artistry of Stephanie Blythe in the male title role. The alluring Danielle de Niese is Orfeo's adored wife, Euridice, who inspires the hero to face the underworld for her sake. Music Director James Levine conducts.

Conductor: James Levine; Production: Mark Morris; Stephanie Blythe, Danielle de Niese

Download the cast sheet and synopsis.


 

Lucia di Lammermoor – Donizetti
Saturday, February 7, 2009 (12:00 pm CT)
Wednesday, February 18, 2009 (7:00 pm CT)

Running time: 3 hours, 34 minutes.

Anna Netrebko sings the title role of Donizetti's fragile heroine for the first time at the Met, with tenor Rolando Villazón in the part of her lover, Edgardo. Baritone Mariusz Kwiecien is her tyrannical brother. Mary Zimmerman's hit production is staged as a Victorian ghost story.

Conductor: Marco Armiliato; Production: Mary Zimmerman; Anna Netrebko, Rolando Villazón, Mariusz Kwiecien, Ildar Abdrazakov

Download the cast sheet and synopsis.

 

Madama Butterfly – Puccini
Saturday, March 7, 2009 (12:00 pm CT)
Wednesday, March 18, 2009 (7:00 pm CT)

Running time: 3 hours, 23 minutes.

Cristina Gallardo-Domâs returns to the title role of Anthony Minghella's stunning production, a new classic of the Met repertory, opposite Marcello Giordani.

Conductor: Patrick Summers; Production: Anthony Minghella; Cristina Gallardo-Domâs, Marcello Giordani

Download the cast sheet and synopsis.


 

La Sonnambula (new production) – Bellini
Saturday, March 21, 2009 (12:00 pm CT)
Wednesday, April 1, 2009 (7:00 pm CT)

Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes.

Mary Zimmerman, who directed Natalie Dessay in last season's hit production of Lucia di Lammermoor, underlines La Sonnambula's dual elements of sleep and wakefulness in an intriguing staging set in the present. Bellini's hauntingly lyrical score soars as performed by Dessay and Juan Diego Flórez, back from their sensational run together in La Fille du Régiment.

Conductor: Evelino Pidò; Production: Mary Zimmerman; Natalie Dessay, Juan Diego Flórez, Michele Pertusi

Download the cast sheet and synopsis.

 

La Cenerentola – Rossini
Saturday, May 9, 2009 (11:30 am CT)
Wednesday, May 20, 2009 (7:00 pm CT)

Running time: 3 hours, 0 minutes.

Hot on the heels of her triumphant Met debut as Rosina in last season's Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Elīna Garanča portrays another Rossini charmer in this bel canto Cinderella story. Lawrence Brownlee is her Prince Charming. Veteran baritone Alessandro Corbelli demonstrates his impeccable comic timing to match the gravitas of Met favorite John Relyea.

Conductor: Maurizio Benini; Production: Cesare Lievi; Elīna Garanča, Lawrence Brownlee, Simone Alberghini, Alessandro Corbelli, John Relyea

Download the cast sheet and synopsis.

 
Programs and casting subject to change. Running times are approximate.