2019-2020 Met Opera’s Second Week Has Gershwin, Massenet, Puccini, Verdi

Summary: The 2019-2020 Met Opera’s second week has Gershwin, Massenet, Puccini and Verdi operas of Porgy and Bess, Manon, Turandot and Macbeth, respectively.

The Metropolitan Opera launches the 16th revival of Italian director Franco Zeffirelli's production of Puccini's Turandot in the 2019-2020 season's second week: ‎Antonio Mitri‎ to Franco Zeffirelli Public Group, via Facebook Oct. 10, 2018

The 2019-2020 Met Opera’s second week has Gershwin, Massenet, Puccini and Verdi operas in continuing performances of Porgy and Bess, Manon and Macbeth and with the season’s premiere of Puccini’s Turandot.

The 2019-2020 Met Opera season’s second week begins with the season’s third performance of Porgy and Bess by American composer and pianist George Gershwin (Sept. 26, 1898-July 11, 1937). The Monday, Sept. 30, performance starts at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. The week’s second performance of Porgy and Bess, which numbers as the season’s fourth performance of Gershwin’s folk opera, is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 5, at 1 p.m.

The 2019-2020 Met Opera season’s second week continues performances of revived productions of Macbeth and Manon. The season’s second week includes two performances of each opera. Macbeth by Italian opera composer Giuseppe Verdi (Oct. 10, 1813-Jan. 27, 1901) is performed Tuesday, Oct. 1, at 7:30 p.m. and Friday, Oct. 4, at 8 p.m. Manon by French Romantic Era composer Jules Massenet (May 12, 1842-Aug. 13, 1912) is offered Wednesday, Oct. 2, at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 5, at 8 p.m.

The 2019-2020 Met Opera season’s second week includes the season premiere of Turandot by Italian opera composer Giacomo Puccini (Dec. 22, 1858-Nov. 29, 1924). The season’s opening night performance of Turandot is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 3, at 7:30 p.m.

Beyond its season premiere, Turandot receives 12 additional performances during the 2019-2020 Met Opera season. Including the season premiere, eight performances are scheduled for the autumn. Five performances will be given in spring 2019.

All autumn performances take place in October. After the season premiere on Oct. 3, the month’s performances are slated for Sunday, Oct. 6, at 3 p.m.; Wednesday, Oct. 9, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 12, at 1 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 19, at 12:30 p.m.; Wednesday, Oct. 23, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 26, at 8:30 p.m.; Thursday, Oct. 31, at 7:30 p.m.

All five spring performances occur in April. The month’s performances of Turandot are scheduled for Thursday, April 9, at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time; Monday, April 13, at 7:30 p.m.; Friday, April 17, at 8 p.m.; Tuesday, April 21, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, April 25, at 1 p.m.

The 2019-2020 Met Opera season’s performances of Turandot revive staging directed by Franco Zeffirelli. The Italian film, opera and television director’s staging debuted March 12, 1987, as a new Met Opera production in the opera house’s 132nd performance of Puccini’s oriental-themed opera.

Since its debut as a new production during the 1986-1987 Met Opera season, Franco Zeffirelli’s staging has experienced 15 revivals at the opera house. The Metropolitan Opera’s most recent revival of Zeffirelli’s staging took place during the 2017-2018 Met Opera season. The 2019-2020 Met Opera season’s performances of Turandot number as the 16th revival of Zeffirelli’s staging at the opera house.

David Patrick Stearns, classical music critic for the Philadelphia Inquirer, describes Zeffirelli’s production as having “all but gained tourist-attraction status” (Feb. 20, 2019).

Franco Zeffirelli is credited as the production’s director and set designer. The Zeffirelli production team comprises Anna Anni and Dada Saligeri, costume designers; Gil Wechsler, lighting designer; Chiang Ching, choreographer.

The 2019-2020 Met Opera season’s staging of Puccini’s Turandot numbers as the first of three operas conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin in his second season as the Metropolitan Opera’s music director. Maestro Nézet-Séguin conducts the 2019-2020 season’s autumn performances of Turandot.

The second 2019-2020 season opera conducted by Nézet-Séguin is Wozzeck by Second Viennese School composer Alban Berg (Feb. 9, 1885-Dec. 24, 1935). He is scheduled for the podium for all seven performances during the 2019-2020 Met Opera season.

The third 2019-2020 season conducted by Met Opera’s music director is by French Romantic Era composer Jules Massenet (May 12, 1842-Aug. 13, 1912). Nézet-Séguin’s conductorship is scheduled for five of the season’s six performances of Massenet’s Goethe-influenced opera.

Maestro Nézet-Séguin also will conduct the Metropolitan Opera’s New Year’s Eve Gala Starring Netrebko. The gala begins at 5:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, Tuesday, Dec. 31. The program celebrates Italian opera composer Giacomo Puccini and spotlights Russian operatic soprano Anna Netrebko through one-act vignettes from La Bohème (Act I), Tosca (Act I) and Turandot (Act II).

The takeaways for the 2019-2020 Met Opera season’s second week are that the season premiere of Turandot Thursday, Oct. 3, numbers as the opera house’s 16th revival of Italian director Franco Zeffirelli’s production and that the season’s second week continues performances of the newly produced Porgy and Bess and of revived productions of Massenet’s Manon and Verdi’s Macbeth.

Met Opera Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin opens the 2019-2020 Met Opera season's roster of Sunday matinees with his conductorship of Puccini's Turandot: Yannick Nezet-Seguin @yannicknezetseguinofficial, via Facebook Feb. 20, 2019

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

The Metropolitan Opera launches the 16th revival of Italian director Franco Zeffirelli's production of Puccini's Turandot in the 2019-2020 season's second week: Antonio Mitri to Franco Zeffirelli Public Group, via Facebook Oct. 10, 2018, @ https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10217661704483571/g.18327912096

Met Opera Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin opens the 2019-2020 Met Opera season's roster of Sunday matinees with his conductorship of Puccini's Turandot: Yannick Nezet-Seguin @yannicknezetseguinofficial, via Facebook Feb. 20, 2019, @ https://www.facebook.com/yannicknezetseguinofficial/photos/a.1919015725025469/2177587325834973/

For further information:

Marriner, Derdriu. “2019-2020 Met Opera Season Opens Monday, Sept. 23, With Porgy and Bess.” Earth and Space News. Monday, Sept. 16, 2019.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/09/2019-2020-met-opera-season-opens-monday.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Gretel Urban Designed Costumes for U.S. Turandot Premiere at Met Opera." Earth and Space News. Monday, July 30, 2018.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/07/gretel-urban-designed-costumes-for-us.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “Turandot Is March 24, 2018, Met Opera Saturday Matinee Broadcast.” Earth and Space News. Monday, March 19, 2018.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/03/turandot-is-march-24-2018-met-opera.html

“New Production: Turandot.” MetOpera Database > [Met Performance] CID: 287710 New Production Turandot {132} Metropolitan Opera House: 03/12/1987.
Available @ http://archives.metoperafamily.org/archives/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=BibSpeed/fullcit.w?xCID=287710

Stearns, David Patrick. “Metropolitan Opera’s 2019-20 Season Puts Yannick at the Podium for a Wild Multimedia Ride.” The Inquirer > Arts. Feb. 20, 2019.
Available @ https://www.philly.com/arts/metropolitan-opera-season-announcement-yannick-schedule-gelb-20190220.html