Opera greats at screen near you

OPERA is being presented live from the Metropolitan Opera, New York in French cinemas.

The prestigious venue is putting on works by the likes of Verdi, Puccini and Wagner, with singers such as Roberto Alagna, Placido Domingo, Juan Diego Flórez and Anna Netrebko.

The season opens on October 9 at 19.00 with Wagner’s Das Rheingold, starring Bryn Terefel as Wotan, king of the gods, Wagner’s most renowned bass-baritone role.

Operas continue on Saturdays until May, when the second part of the Ring Cycle, Die Walküre, closes the season, with Deborah Voigt as Wotan’s daughter, Brünnhilde, left.

See www.cielecran.fr for details and http://tinyurl.com/metropolitan opera for cinemas taking part.

Last year, the Met tripled its paying audience using live cinema showings, with 2.5 million tickets sold worldwide.

“It has helped make it possible for opera to continue to flourish in a difficult time,” said general manager Peter Gelb