Head to Douglass Theatre to see Metropolitan Opera broadcast of 'Turandot,' Puccini's finest opera
The great Giacomo Puccini didn't live to finish "Turandot," but many in the music world nonetheless find it to be his finest opera. That said, it's also a tale that may put you off dating for a good long while.
The Metropolitan Opera's latest edition of this classic has experienced cast changes during the lengthy run, but currently this richly ornate production features Nina Stemme in the title role, Marco Berti as Calaf, her most recent suitor, and Anita Hartig as the loyal servant Liu.
The images on the Met's website assure us that this lavish 1987 staging has by no means lost its luster. Spectacle often plays a major part in grand opera, and this "Turandot" is a dazzler.
At the opening, an edict is being read to the crowd, proclaiming that anyone (any prince, of course) with designs to wed the princess Turandot will first have to answer three riddles. Death comes to those who fail, and the Prince of Persia is at that moment awaiting execution.
In the audience is the slave Liu, her elderly master, and the young Calaf, who realizes that the old man is his father. Liu tells Calaf that she has been faithful to the father because Calaf once smiled upon her. We also learn that Turandot seeks to avenge the death of an ancestor.
Defying all warnings and drawn to Turandot's beauty, Calaf announces that he will be the next suitor. Ultimately he will turn the tables and challenge the princess with a riddle of his own. Will love overcome the hatred in Turandot's heart? Will Calaf win the unattainable princess? The closing scene is a powerful one, revealing why this tale is one of the most beloved in all of Puccini's vast canon.
This season marks the 10th anniversary of the Met's Live in HD telecasts -- certainly an inspired idea, one that now brings the splendor of the Met into more than 2,000 theaters in 66 countries.
'Turandot'
When: 12:55 p.m. Jan. 30
Where: Douglass Theatre, 355 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.; the Galleria Mall Stadium Cinemas 15, 2980 Watson Blvd., Warner Robins
Cost: $24 adults, $20 seniors and students
Information: www.metopera.org/hdlive
This story was originally published January 28, 2016 at 3:48 PM with the headline "Head to Douglass Theatre to see Metropolitan Opera broadcast of 'Turandot,' Puccini's finest opera ."