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The Metropolitan Opera may have closed its grand doors for the rest of 2020, but the company continues to stream free recordings of complete productions from its archives every night. The lineup from August 3 through August 9 includes full operas by Mozart, Verdi, Wagner, Puccini, Offenbach and Handel. Most of the productions were recorded for release in cinemas through the Met's beloved Live in HD series. (Click here to see the Met's schedule for October 12 through October 18.)
Each production goes live on the Met's website at 7:30pm EDT (12:30am BST) and remains viewable until 6:30pm EDT the following day. The operas can also be viewed on multiple devices through the Met Opera on Demand app. A full schedule for Week 21 is below.
Les Contes d’Hoffmann | Photograph: Marty Sohl
This week's slate includes two productions from before the HD era: Wednesday's 1995 account of the Verdi rarity Simon Boccanegra, with a cast that includes Kiri Te Kanawa and Plácido Domingo; and Friday's 1992 broadcast of Wagner's Parsifal, starring Siegfried Jerusalem. Other highlights include Julie Taymor's imaginative staging of The Magic Flute on Monday, a fizzy performance of Offenbach's Les Contes d'Hoffman on Tuesday and, on Saturday, a striking 2020 production of Handel's Agrippina, with Joyce DiDonato as the ruthless mother of the Roman emperor Nero. To learn more about these operas and others, consult the Met's useful thumbnail guide or take a deeper look into the Met's articles and podcasts.
In addition to its free nightly streams, the Met now offers pay-per-view virtual concerts by top singers every other Saturday. The latest edition, which features Met pillar Renée Fleming, is available on demand through August 12.
This week's Metropolitan Opera Live in HD schedule:
Monday, August 3: Mozart’s The Magic Flute
Starring Ying Huang, Erika Miklósa, Matthew Polenzani, Nathan Gunn and René Pape. Conducted by James Levine. Transmitted live on December 30, 2006.
Tuesday, August 4: Offenbach’s Les Contes d’Hoffmann
Starring Erin Morley, Hibla Gerzmava, Kate Lindsey, Christine Rice, Vittorio Grigolo and Thomas Hampson. Conducted by Yves Abel. From January 31, 2015.
Wednesday, August 5: Verdi’s Simon Boccanegra
Starring Vladimir Chernov, Kiri Te Kanawa, Plácido Domingo and Robert Lloyd. Conducted by James Levine. From January 26, 1995.
Thursday, August 6: Puccini’s Madama Butterfly
Starring Kristine Opolais, Maria Zifchak, Roberto Alagna and Dwayne Croft. Conducted by Karel Mark Chichon. Transmitted live on April 2, 2016.
Friday, August 7: Wagner’s Parsifal
Starring Siegfried Jerusalem, Waltraud Meier, Bernd Weikl and Kurt Moll. Conducted by James Levine. Transmitted live on March 28, 1992.
Saturday, August 8: Handel’s Agrippina
Starring Joyce DiDonato, Brenda Rae, Kate Lindsey, Iestyn Davies, Duncan Rock and Matthew Rose. Conducted by Harry Bicket. Transmitted live on February 29, 2020.
Sunday, August 9: Mozart’s Don Giovanni
Starring Hibla Gerzmava, Malin Byström, Serena Malfi, Paul Appleby, Simon Keenlyside and Adam Plachetka, Conducted by Fabio Luisi. Transmitted live on October 22, 2016.
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The Magic Flute | Photograph: Cory Weaver
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