The Metropolitan Opera HD Live premiere of Luigi Cherubini’s masterpiece, “Medea,” starring Sondra Radvanovsky, will open the company’s 137th season, transmitted Saturday, October 22, 11:55 a.m. at Movie Space Cinema in Ajijic.
Following triumphant performances at the Met as some of the repertory’s most dramatic heroines, Radvanovsky sings Medea for the first time, taking on the tour-de-force role made famous by Maria Callas.
Joining Radvanovsky is tenor Matthew Polenzani as Medea’s husband, Giasone (Jason the Argonaut); soprano Janai Brugger as the rival for his love, Glauce; bass Michele Pertusi as her father, Creonte, the King of Corinth; and mezzo-soprano Ekaterina Gubanova as Neris, Medea’s servant.
The opera presents Radvanovsky’s fourth appearance in a new production at the Met by David McVicar. The performance is led by Carlo Rizzi, who also conducts Verdi’s “Don Carlo” and Puccini’s “Tosca” at the Met this fall.
In this emotion-packed staging of the Greek myth, the sorceress Medea reflects the symbolic frustration of a woman betrayed by men and shunned by society. She embraces her rage, finally murdering her two children as an act of vengeance against her lover Giasone, their father. Originally sung in French at its Paris premiere in 1797, the Met’s production will be performed in the Italian translation by Carlo Zangarini, a hybrid version that was revived for Maria Callas in 1953.
This production is presented by The Chapala Opera Guild and Moviespace Cinemas at Laguna Mall in both Spanish and with English subtitles. Reserved season and individual tickets are available daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the box office.
For more information visit www.chapalaoperaguild.org.