Handel’s “Agrippina” has its Met premiere on Feb. “Porgy” is among five new-to-the Met stagings next season that all will have appeared elsewhere previously. A revival already is scheduled in an upcoming season. 1 will be broadcast to movie theaters around the world.

“The original version just really goes on and on and on.” “It doesn’t feel excessively long,” Robinson said.

The staging by James Robinson debuted at London’s English National Opera last year and was seen this year at the Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam.

This production is trimmed to about 2 1/2 hours of music plus a single intermission. That staging, which appeared 54 times through 1990, was presented in three acts with 3 hours of music and two intermissions for a total of 4 hours. Then-Met music director James Levine insisted on an uncut version for the 1985 Nathaniel Merrill production. I’m hoping that they will interact as much as possible.”Įric Owens and Angel Blue head the opening-night cast, which is conducted by David Robertson and includes Denyce Graves, Latonia Moore, Golda Schultz and Ryan Speedo Green. “It’s going to be interesting but it’s going to be a lot of fun. “We will have two existing choruses at the same time in the building,” he said. The Hungarian State Opera created controversy last year when it presented an unauthorized production with a largely white cast.ĭonald Palumbo, the Met chorus master, said about 400 people had auditioned for the “Porgy” chorus since November and 68 would be chosen for rehearsals that start Aug. “We have many African-Americans and other black artists who are appearing on our stage in major roles.” “I think the Met is regarded as an institution that is colorblind when it comes to casting,” Gelb said.

Met opera porgy and bess