Read expert-written show guides with context, plot, characters and video examples.
Idomeneo
King Idomeneo is returning from his victory in the Trojan war when a great storm destroys his ship....
L'incoronazione di Poppea (The Coronation of Poppea)
The beautiful Poppea has caught the eye of the emperor Nerone , and he has fallen devotedly in love...
L'Orfeo - Favola in Musica
After many years of loneliness and lamenting, the musician Orfeo can now sing songs of joy. Today he...
The Old Maid and the Thief
Originally written for NBC radio, Gian Carlo Menotti’s one-act opera The Old Maid and the Thief expo...
Orfeo ed Euridice
According to the legend, Orpheus was famous with the Gods for his incredible singing ability and hi...
Parsifal
The legend of the Holy Grail is one that has had many retellings. The Holy Grail is an important sym...
Peter Grimes
The tragic story of Peter Grimes revolves around the tormented title character, a fisherman who find...
Pyramus and Thisbe
Originally taken from Ovid’s Metamorphoses and transplanted by a group of rustic ‘Mechanicals’ into...
Semele
Semele’s father, the King of Thebes, has arranged a marriage for her with Athamas, a Prince of Boeot...
La serva padrona
Considered by many to be the first example of opera buffa, Pergolesi’s short opera La serva padrona...
Siegfried
In the third installment of Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen we meet our hero Siegfried, the son of...
Street Scene
The claustrophobic reality of living in a six-storey walk-up in the Lower East Side of Manhattan is...
