Read expert-written show guides with context, plot, characters and video examples.
The Handmaid's Tale
Set in the United States in the early 21st Century, the country is run by a theocratic Protestant fu...
Manon Lescaut
A tale of ill-fated romance, Manon Lescaut has been a favorite of opera goers since its debut. It is...
Nabucco
In Verdi's retelling of the Old Testament stories of King Nebuchadnezzar II's religious conversion,...
Pagliacci
A dramatic tale of love and betrayal, Pagliacci revolves around a commedia dell'arte troupe. Canio a...
Rusalka
Considered to be the operatic retelling of The Little Mermaid story, Rusalka is a Czech fairy-tale a...
Samson et Dalila
Samson has been given strength and courage from God to lead the Hebrews in a deadly rebellion agains...
Tannhäuser
Having been led astray by the goddess Venus, Tannhäuser is desperate to return to his beloved Elisab...
Cendrillon (Massenet)
Cendrillon is Massenet’s beautiful operatic retelling of the fairy tale of Cinderella. We meet all o...
La Clemenza di Tito
One of Mozart’s last operas, La clemenza di Tito , is a story of friendship and forgiveness triumphi...
Les contes d'Hoffmann
Set during the interval of a performance of Don Giovanni, the writer and poet Hoffmann entertains a...
Euridice
The opera's story is based on Ovid's Metamorphoses. It contains one of the first examples of recitat...
La fanciulla del West
Set during the Gold Rush, the ‘Polka’ Saloon, which is near California’s Cloudy Mountain, hosts the...
