Photos: First Look at The Met HD'S FALSTAFF, Coming to Cinemas This Weekend

Verdi's exuberant final opera, Falstaff, brought down the house with laughter and applause at its opening on Sunday, 12th March, and audiences around the world are invited to experience the production live in cinemas on Saturday 1st April. Check out all new photos from the production below!

Baritone Michael Volle sings the title character, his first Verdi role at the Met after several masterful Wagner performances at the house, creating a deliciously undignified Falstaff and a booming, endlessly interesting antihero (The New York Times).

Alongside Volle, soprano Ailyn Pérez, in her Live in HD debut, is Alice Ford; mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnson Cano is Meg Page; and contralto Marie-Nicole Lemieux is Mistress Quickly. In addition, soprano Hera Hyesang Park sings Nanetta, alongside tenor Bogdan Volkov as Fenton and baritone Christopher Maltman as Ford, all making their Met role debuts. Maestro Daniele Rustioni conducts.

Falstaff largely follows the plot of Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor, with some additional material drawn from the Bard's Henry IV, Part I and Henry IV, Part II. Director Robert Carsen, whose acclaimed production premiered at the Met in 2013, sets the action in 1950s England. The creative team also includes set designer Paul Steinberg, costume designer Brigitte Reiffenstuel, and lighting designers Robert Carsen and Peter Van Praet.

Habib Azar directs the Live in HD presentation. Bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green, star of Terence Blanchard's Champion, serves as the host, sharing exclusive behind-the-scenes access during the intermission.

To book cinema tickets for Falstaff, please visit MetLiveInHD.co.uk.

Photo Credit: Karen Almond / Met Opera