Stage Door News
Stage Door News
New York, NY (February 23, 2012)—An abundance of Verdi and Wagner, in celebration of their 200th birthdays, will be featured in the Metropolitan Opera’s 2012-13 season, which will showcase the world’s greatest singers, conductors, and directors in seven new productions—two of them Met premieres—and 21 revivals, including three complete Ring cycles. Twelve of the season’s Saturday matinees will be transmitted worldwide as part of the Met’s increasingly popular, award-winning Live in HD series.
On October 23, Thomas Adès will conduct the Met premiere of his opera The Tempest, the highly regarded new work that received its world premiere in 2004 at London’s Royal Opera House. It will be directed by Robert Lepage and star Simon Keenlyside as Prospero.
Acclaimed French-Canadian director François Girard makes his Met debut with a new staging of Wagner’s Parsifal on February 15, with Daniele Gatti conducting Jonas Kaufmann in his Met role debut as the title character. The cast also includes Katarina Dalayman, Peter Mattei, and René Pape.
The Tempest – Thomas Adès
Met Premiere
Premiere: October 23
Conductor: Thomas Adès*
Libretto: Meredith Oakes
Production: Robert Lepage
Set Designer: Jasmine Catudal*
Costume Designer: Kym Barrett*
Lighting Designer: Michel Beaulieu*
Video Designer: David Leclerc*
Cast: Audrey Luna (Ariel), Isabel Leonard (Miranda), Iestyn Davies (Trinculo), Alek Shrader* (Ferdinand), Alan Oke (Caliban), William Burden (King of Naples), Toby Spence (Antonio), Simon Keenlyside (Prospero)
Live in HD: November 10
A co-production of the Metropolitan Opera, L'Opéra de Québec, and the Wiener Staatsoper, Vienna
In collaboration with Ex Machina
British composer Thomas Adès makes his company debut conducting the Met premiere of his opera The Tempest, which has been widely praised as a modern masterpiece. Robert Lepage’s innovative production recreates the interior of the La Scala opera house as the magical island venue for the otherworldly arts of Prospero, the exiled Duke of Milan. Simon Keenlyside sings Prospero, as he did to critical acclaim in the opera’s world premiere at Covent Garden. “The Tempest is an extraordinary, exquisite composition,” Lepage says. “The opera captures the magic of Shakespeare’s last play. It is a box full of magic tricks, which makes it a gift for me and for the designers.” The opera also stars Isabel Leonard as Prospero’s daughter, Miranda; Toby Spence as his brother, Antonio; Audrey Luna as the spirit Ariel; Iestyn Davies as the jester, Trinculo; Alek Shrader in his Met debut as the noble Ferdinand; Alan Oke as the monstrous Caliban; and William Burden as the King of Naples. The libretto, by Meredith Oakes, features new text set to the story of Shakespeare’s play.
Parsifal - Richard Wagner
Premiere: February 15, 2013
Conductor: Daniele Gatti/Asher Fisch
Production: François Girard*
Set Designer: Michael Levine
Costume Designer: Thibault Vancraenenbroeck*
Lighting Designer: David Finn*
Video Designer: Peter Flaherty*
Choreographer: Carolyn Choa
Dramaturg: Serge Lamothe*
Cast: Katarina Dalayman (Kundry), Jonas Kaufmann (Parsifal), Peter Mattei (Amfortas), Evgeny Nikitin (Klingsor), René Pape (Gurnemanz)
Live in HD: March 2, 2013
A co-production of the Metropolitan Opera, the Opéra National de Lyon, and the Canadian Opera Company
Jonas Kaufmann makes his Met role debut as the title character in Parsifal, conducted by Daniele Gatti and directed by noted film and opera director François Girard in his Met debut. “Parsifal is not just an opera—it’s a mission. At the end of his life, Wagner was trying to reconcile all the aspects of his spirituality. It’s a sacred piece in the history of music,” Girard says. The cast also features Katarina Dalayman as Kundry, the mysterious woman who tempts Parsifal to betray his mission; Peter Mattei in his role debut as Amfortas, ruler of the Knights of the Holy Grail; René Pape in one of his greatest roles, the wise old knight Gurnemanz; and Evgeny Nikitin as the magician Klingsor.
Ring Cycles
The year 2013 is also the bicentennial of Wagner’s birth. In addition to the new production of Parsifal, the Met will present three complete cycles of the composer’s epic masterwork, Der Ring des Nibelungen, in April and May, conducted by Fabio Luisi in Robert Lepage’s stunning, technologically advanced production. The casts include Deborah Voigt and Katarina Dalayman as Brünnhilde; Jay Hunter Morris and Lars Cleveman as Siegfried; Mark Delavan and Greer Grimsley as Wotan; Hans-Peter König as Fafner, Hunding, and Hagen; Stephanie Blythe as Fricka; Eric Owens as Alberich; Martina Serafin in her Met debut as Sieglinde; and Simon O’Neill as Siegmund. The cycles will be the 111th, 112th and 113th presented at the Met since the first cycle in the Western Hemisphere was performed at the house in 1889. The Ring cycle is made possible by a generous gift from Ann Ziff and the Ziff Family, in memory of William Ziff.
Ticket Prices
There will be an increase in ticket prices for the new season, averaging 4.2% on subscriptions and 7.6% on single tickets. Nearly 500 tickets in certain sections, including the orchestra, dress circle, balcony, and family circle, will decrease in price. The least expensive tickets will be priced at $20, a lower price than in past seasons. More than one-third of the Met’s seats will be available for less than $100.
2012-02-23
New York: Robert Lepage and François Girard will direct new productions in the Met’s 2012-13 season